


KILLER 살인자

by aeradesu



Category: BLACKPINK (Band), EXO (Band), TWICE (Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/M, Murder Mystery, Mystery, Romance, Top Park Jimin (BTS)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:09:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 60
Words: 57,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23681371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aeradesu/pseuds/aeradesu
Summary: in which dahyun is accused of killing jimin's parents. she needs to find a way to prove that she's innocent. except one problem, she can't do it without jimin.(lowercase intended)
Relationships: Kim Dahyun/Park Jimin (BTS), Park Jimin (BTS)/Reader
Kudos: 7





	1. killer

**dahyun**

in everyone's eyes, i was the killer. the murderer who killed park jimin's parents three years ago.

news articles would say different things. some said it was out of cold blood, others thought i was seeking out for revenge...but nobody knew the truth.

i was innocent.

people would turn their heads when i tried defending myself. no one would listen. they didn't want to hear the truth. people wanted drama, they want to be able to hate on someone. i was an easy target. everyday i would be treated as an outsider, with no place in the world. i was the lonely, pathetic and heartless person who didn't deserve anything but grief.

i was only fifteen when all this happened.

now three years later, as a student studying her last year in high school, i was still treated like an outsider. almost every day of the week, students would greet me with glares as i walked through the halls.

ever since jimin's parents were killed...i was nothing in this school.

there would be people trying to help me with my 'problems'. i was sent to counselling every day. it was always in the mornings which wasn't bad since i got to miss assembly. it was always walking out to my first period that was the problem.

everyone and i mean everyone would be in the hallways by then. this meant i would have to drop my head low as i shuffled through the hallway to my first class. but this was always hard when people threw rubbish at me, or when they called me names or pushing me over.

this was life of kim dahyun.

but today happened to be an extra tough day. someone lodged their foot in front of mine, causing me to trip onto the ground.

"what are you doing? you should be in jail," an obnoxious voice voiced down at my figure on the floor. i knew exactly who it was. the one person who's been tormenting me the most ever since i killed his parents.

park jimin.

"you're so worthless, no wonder your parents abandoned you," he called out, towering over me with his height. i proceeded to look up, staring at his angered face with my frightened one.

"i'm sorry," i quietly muttered, looking back down at the ground. whenever this happened, i would just apologise and keep quiet. i felt sorry for him. he lost both his mum and dad on the same day three years ago, it was just as tough on him as it was for me. for the past three years, he's taken the anger gathered from his parent's death and channelled it towards me.this was done either by locking me in a closet for five hours, pushing me into a wall or spreading rumours about me.

and it didn't get any easier as the days went.

the bell rang. students started running into their classes, leaving me and jimin in the hallway by ourselves. i could feel his eyes trained on me. it was silent except for our heavy breathing. i had to get to class so i stood up, hesitantly facing him.

"i'm sorry," i whispered, avoiding his eyes.

there was a pause.

"sorry doesn't bring back my parents," he snapped at me as he proceeded to push me hard backwards. my back smashed into the lockers, causing a sharp pain to arise in my body. i winced, letting out a small whimper.

i was hurt on the outside but on the inside, i would calmly talk to myself. 'it's okay..i'm okay with it. he can take all his anger on me...it's okay.'

as i opened my eyes again, he wasn't there anymore. his back was turned against me as he was walking away, his footsteps slowly faded away.

i was once again left alone.

because i was the killer.


	2. choke

**dahyun**

"now class, i expect all those pages to be completed by the end of the week."

sitting in maths, completely zoned out as always. it didn't help that the teacher spoke in a monotone voice.

also didn't help that i couldn't sleep last night. my eyes felt heavy and my head started feeling heavy.

suddenly, my chair was kicked from behind. i abruptly woke up, my eyes wide open. i looked behind my shoulder to see jimin staring at me with a smirk playing on his lips.

"stop copying me, dahyun," he said to me, a little too loudly. the teacher heard him and turned her attention to me

"kim dahyun!" she shouted, piercing me with her scary look. i turned my head back from jimin to the teacher, staring at her with wide eyes.

"i cannot tolerate this kind of behaviour. if you payed attention in class, you wouldn't need to copy other student's work!" she bellowed, her veins bulging out of her neck.

i opened my mouth in shock.

is this really happening?

i spoke in a quiet voice, "but ms, i didn't do it. jimin..he kicke-" the teacher stopped me, "i don't want to hear excuses! do you want to spend a week in detention?"

i shook my head and stayed quiet. the whole class stared at me with distant glares. jimin smiled with satisfaction as the teacher harshly yelled at me once more.

she returned to her whiteboard before quietly muttering, "lying twat."

so that was my morning. now lunch, where i was sitting alone per usual.

there was a giggle behind me, i turned my head to see jimin standing with a girl. he had his body pressed against hers as her hands slowly travelled to his crotch. she giggled again as jimin laid several butterfly kisses on her jaw.

"mmh, baby," he groaned out as she gripped onto his hardened core. she teasingly started unzipping his pants, putting her hand inside his pants. he groaned and proceeded to suck the skin on her neck.

this happened every time jimin got a new girlfriend. he would be with a new girl every week. they would fuck everywhere and anywhere possible, the bathroom, janitor closet, classrooms and even the nurse's office.

i didn't let it get to me. i could care less.

what happened next was worth mentioning.

as i was walking to my last class, something pushed me incredibly hard. i landed onto the ground. next thing i know, jimin was straddling me. he gripped my collar and glared at me with a terrifying expression.

"why did you threaten my girlfriend?!" he yelled at my face, blood coursing through his veins making his face red in anger. i furrowed my eyebrows in confusion and was about to say something when he gripped my neck, painfully choking me.

i clawed at his hands, trying to release his strong grip. my face turned blue as i gasped for air, my legs kicked in desperation.

"you trying to kill her too?! huh?!" jimin yelled again, increasing his grip on my neck. tears formed in my eyes as i started seeing black spots in my vision.

this was the end, i was going to die.

"jimin!" a high pitched voice yelled out, grabbing jimin by the shoulder. i gasped for air as soon as his grip released from my neck. i looked in jimin's direction to see his girlfriend telling him something in distress.

"i meant the other dahyun! jeon dahyun not kim dahyun!" i heard her say.

jimin was perplexed and stared at her with wide eyes. his eyes turned to me on the ground as i started crying with agony.

"i can't believe you," his girlfriend stated, grabbing his hand and pulling him away from the scene. the other student stared at me, none of which bothered to help.

except...

"are you okay?" a gentle voice called out. a feather-like touch was placed on my shoulder. i looked up to see an unfamiliar person crouching beside me. he brought his hand out and voiced out, "here, i'll help you." i stared at his hand with confusion.

'was this a dream?' i thought to myself, looking at him with hesitant eyes.

'or maybe it's god carrying me to heaven,' i thought, grabbing his hand. he smiled softly and pulled me up. we stood facing each other, he caressed my hand.

"are you okay?" he asked again, bringing his other hand up and wiped my tear-soaked cheeks.

'yup, i'm definitely dead.'

"never thought my first day would start like this.." he spoke, smiling at me. i looked at his dashingly handsome face.

"you're a new student?" i asked in a croaky voice. the male nodded, never letting go of my hand. he said, "never thought i would meet a pretty girl on my first day either."

a smile crept my lips as i continued staring at him with dazed eyes.

"i'm kim dahyun," i weakly spoke out, continuing to smile at this stranger.

he returned the smile.

"i'm kim taehyung. nice to meet you."


	3. friend

**dahyun**

it was three days after jimin nearly killed me. he hasn't looked at me since and quite frankly, i'm happy about it.

but also from that day, taehyung and i became friends. he was the complete opposite to me but hey, _opposites attract._

we were sitting together in the lunch hall. taehyung drank his juice box while unwrapping his sandwich. it never occurred to me why he always chose to sit with me. on his first day, he also had a lot of friends.

but here he was, sitting next to me.

"how's your neck?" he asked, throwing his juice box into the bin. i shrugged and contently replied, "getting better but still hurts." taehyung nodded and asked, "do you want to go to the nurse again? i can take you." i shook my head and declined.

taehyung smiled.

then someone came up to us.

"hey fatty, why don't you stop eating?" a guy asked as he walked past us. i ignored him and continued eating my lunch.

"you deaf, fatty?" he called out again, my eyes darted to his water bottle.

taehyung glared at him and yelled, "why don't you leave her alone?" when the guy left, taehyung sighed and asked me, "hey, why do you always get teased and shit?"

i bit my lip, not knowing what to say.

i haven't told him that everyone thought i was a murderer.

should i tell him?

_yes._

"hey, can we talk? in private?" i asked, looking at him. he looked up from his sandwich and nodded.

soon after that, we were standing alone on the roof.

"what is it?" taehyung asked, standing in front of me with a worried expression.

a part of me was saying not tell him about being an _assumed killer_ but another part of me desperately wanted to tell him.

he needed to know.

"the reason why everyone here hates me...is because.." i started but couldn't finish my sentence.

this was harder than i thought.

'what if he runs away? what if he gets scared of me?'

taehyung stared at me and tilted his head, waiting for my response. i looked at the ground and closed my eyes.

"they think...i'm a...m..murderer.." i said quietly, not sure if he heard me.

"i know," taehyung said ever so casually. i looked at him with shocked eyes, raising an eyebrow, "what? you know i killed jimin's parents?"

he smiled and shook his head, "i know you _didn't_ kill jimin's parents."

i was still confused.

"the soccer team sure does like to talk about you. i pretty much know everything," he stated.

i blinked twice, not believing his words and asked, "then why are you here?"

"huh?" he questioned.

"why are you here with me? don't you hate me? don't you want to run away?" i wearily asked him.

"not at all because i know you didn't do it," he said back.

'he believes me? he knows i'm innocent?' i asked myself, dazed.

there was still something not clicking.

"wait, then why did you ask earlier about why everyone hated me? didn't you already know why?" taehyung shrugged and honestly replied, "i actually don't know why everyone bullies you. you didn't kill jimin's parents so why bully an innocent person?"

from those words, my eyes started tearing up.

 _'why bully an innocent person?'_

"dahyun?" taehyung asked worriedly, seeing me grow upset.

i expected him to be scared and run away. never in a million years did i expect to have someone _believe in me._

with tears streaming down my cheeks, i stepped forward and wrapped my arms around his waist. i engulfed my face in his chest as i let my tears fall.

"thank you," i whispered.

he returned the embrace, protectively nurturing me with his arms.

"you're welcome."


	4. money

**dahyun**

i'm not lying when i say this.

school isn't so bad anymore.

when someone tried to bully me, taehyung was there to protect me. when we walk down the halls, taehyung has his arm linked with mine. when we're sitting at lunch, he blocked the people trying to throw me insults.

it was all him.

taehyung.

we became best friends. i already knew everything about him and he knew everything about me. it was something i never imagined myself having.. a real _friendship_.

it even made me forget about jimin. he still hasn't spoken a word to me since the incident. it was all a dream.

i never wanted to wake up.

it was the end of the week and i waved goodbye to taehyung. he was going away for the weekend and honestly, i missed him already.

saturday flew by quickly. i was standing in line at a supermarket, buying some dinner. walking out into a chilly afternoon, i shivered and held my warm dinner close to me. the supermarket was only a fifteen-minute walk from my small apartment.

these days, i was at peace. not just because the bullying at school stopped but because i was finally happy.

but i spoke too soon.

there was someone following me. i peeked behind my shoulder to see a dark figure, walking behind me. i picked up my pace and he picked up the pace.

soon, i was running.

but..

a hand harshly gripped onto my wrist and stopped my movements. i looked at him with fear and wanted to scream, but his hand on my mouth prevented me from doing so.

"shut up," he told me in a hushed tone. my heart started beating out of my chest. i stopped struggling in his hold and stood still.

the man dragged me inside an alleyway where he pressed my back up against a wall.

"you have money?" he asked, bringing his face close to mine. i scrunched my face in disgust after smelling his breath which reeked of alcohol and cigarettes.

i shook my head and he became angrier.

"don't lie to me," he spat out, putting his hand on my jacket, feeling my pockets for any change.

"i'm not lying," i retaliated, growing more anxious by the second.

"i don't believe you," his eyes pierced into my soul, haunting me with his evil demeanour. "do you know what happens when a person lies?" he asked in a scary tone. i gulped, my whole body started to shake in fear.

'oh shit,' i thought.

he brought his hand up and slapped me across my cheek, causing my head to snap in the right direction. tears instantly welled in my eyes as a stinging sensation arose on my cheek.

he was about to strike again. i squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to see. this time was harder and more painful. i bit my lip, holding in a sob. my cheek started throbbing in pain.

"not enough?" he asked, not waiting for my answer and went to punch my gut. i leant over in pain, coughing while groaning relentlessly.

i fell onto the ground, it was too painful. i felt hopeless and weak.

the man stood over me, he lifted his leg and aimed it onto my stomach. shutting my eyes again, i braced myself.

only this time..it never came.

i heard a sudden thud along with the man's screams. he yelped and begged for mercy. i opened my eyes, not able to see what's going on due to my blurred vision.

then suddenly, the man's crying stopped.

there was silence except for my heavy breathing.

i heard footsteps approaching me. their hands went under my body, lifting me up with ease and carried me bridal style.

"what.." i said quietly, not knowing where this stranger was taking me. i looked up, blinking a couple of times to ease the blurry effects.

my breath got caught in my throat. i stared at the familiar face as he carried me down the street. his face was blank but showed anger in his eyes.

those same eyes who looked at me with disgust every day in school.

but today, he saved me.

"jimin?"


	5. saviour

**jimin**

it was saturday evening. i went to buy some milk when i saw dahyun standing in line. usually, i would be trying to hurt her or make her feel like shit..but after what i did.

i couldn't bring myself to look at her.

she deserved it but..strangling her to the point of nearly killing her.

_that was low, jimin._

'leave her alone from now on, jimin. you've hurt her enough,' was what i told myself after the incident. from that day, i never talked to her, never touched her or caused any trouble.

i bent my head low and stood in line, avoiding gazing up at dahyun. she paid for her meal and walked out of the store, proceeding to walk down the street.

after paying for my meal, i couldn't help but walk the same way as dahyun. it was only until i witnessed some bastard hurting her.

"do you know what happens when a person lies?" the man told her in a scary tone. i saw the frightful expression of dahyun. he brought his hand up and slapped her across the face.

'the fuck?' i thought, taking a step forward. the way he was treating dahyun infuriated me. it reminded me how i treated her. i clenched my fists tightly together.

_i'm the only person allowed to hurt her, no one else._

'help her,' my subconscious told me but my body was frozen. i didn't move.

"not enough?" the man asked dahyun in a harsh tone. my eyes widened when he shoved his fist in her stomach, making her lean forward in pain.

'help her,' my subconscious didn't have to tell me twice, i was already moving. just as he was about to kick her, i gripped his shoulders and pulled him backwards. he landed on the ground, i straddled him and gripped his collar. gritting my teeth, i punched his jaw.

i couldn't stop myself, it was as if satin controlled my body. i kept punching, one, two, three until..he didn't move anymore.

there was silence except for dahyun's heavy breathing.

i released a shaky breath and released his collar. standing up, i approached dahyun. she laid immobilised on the ground. my hands went under her frail body and lifted her up. i brought her close to me and walked away from the crime scene.

carrying her body down the street, i felt accomplished.

now we're even.

"jimin?" i heard a soft voice call my name. averting my attention to the wounded girl in my arms, i answered, "don't worry, i'm not going to hurt you."

there was no response, she looked away from my eyes.

silence.

"thank you.." was all she said before falling asleep in my arms.


	6. care

**dahyun**

my eyes slowly opened. my body was still sore. my mind was blank.

'where am i?' i thought, turning my head and scanning my surroundings. i was..at home? furrowing my eyebrows, i slowly tried to get up but failed.

the door to my bedroom opened. i widened my eyes when i saw jimin walk inside with a bowl held in his hands. he saw me and muttered, "oh, you're awake."

my eyes stared at his figure with confusion.

'what's happened? why is he here?' i asked myself, complete confusion by the current situation. he approached me and sat down on a stool beside the bed.

"here, eat this," jimin spoke in a soft voice, placing the bowl of warm soup on my lap. i stared at the bowl, not sure if i should eat it or not. jimin noticed my hesitation and as if he read my mind, he stated, "don't worry, i didn't do anything. it'll help with the pain."

i looked at him, staring into his soft brown eyes.

"why are you helping me?" i asked quietly. jimin stared at me, not saying a word.

after a couple of minutes, he just said, "stop talking and just eat."

"only if you tell me why you're helping me," i answered back.

"no," he stubbornly said, continuing to stare at me. i sighed, picking up the spoon and had a sip of the soup. surprisingly, it tasted really good.

"how did you learn to cook like this?" i asked.

there was a pause.

"my mother" jimin replied with a hint of sadness. i swallowed the soup as tension suddenly rose in the room.

"oh," was all i said, placing the spoon down. i knew where this was going.

"my mother cooked for me all the time..but when you killed her, i had to cook for myself," he said, staring at me with indescribable eyes.

i sighed again, biting my lip.

jimin continued, "my dad could cook too, remember that time he made you a cake on your birthday? i bet in a million years he never imagined being murdered by you."

i looked at him, not being taken back by his intense eyes.

"i didn't kill your parents," i breathed out each word, trying to tell him for the millionth time. a smirk formed on his lips and he replied, "keep telling yourself that. the only reason why you're not in jail was because there was no evidence..but i saw you."

i kept quiet.

jimin didn't say anything else. he just got up and left the room.

yet again, i was alone.


	7. accompany

**dahyun**

it was monday and i was back at school. going through my locker, i heard fast footsteps approaching me.

"dahyun! i'm back from my trip!" a gleeful voice yelled out.

i smiled.

taehyung was back.

i closed my locker door to see taehyung running up to me, embracing me warmly. i giggled into his chest and returned the hug.

"i missed you," i quietly mumbled, earning a chuckle from him. "i missed you, too," he replied, resting his forehead onto mine.

when he pulled away, he asked, "how was your weekend?"

i paused and looked at the ground, not wanting to tell him about getting attacked.

"no, not much," i replied quietly, looking back up at him. he smiled at me and whispered, "you can tell me later.”

lunch rolled by and taehyung and i sat in our usual place, quieting eating our food together. by this time, i spilled everything that happened on saturday. he was surprised that jimin had the heart to save me but he still felt upset.

"i'm sorry, if i was here i could have saved you," taehyung sighed with upset eyes. i shook my head and said, "no, it's not your fault. i should have been more careful."

he sighed again and held my hand, looking at me with worried eyes. he asked, "are you sure you're okay?" i smiled gently and nodded, "i'm sure."

a sudden bang on the table interrupted our little moment. our heads turned simultaneously to whoever caused the sound at the opposite end of the table.

jimin.

"what do you want?" taehyung spat out at him, continuing to squeeze my hand. jimin eyed the pair of us, his eyes travelling to our linked hands. he looked at taehyung and voiced out, "there's a party on today at kai's house. you both should come."

i gulped at the word 'party.' taehyung replied, "we'll think about it and let you know." jimin smirked and nodded.

we watched as he walked away, leaving us alone. taehyung looked at me and asked, "you wanna go?" i pursed my lips and thought about it. this would be my first party. i never got invited before because i was the outcast. but now, i'm turning into them. i'm slowly becoming accepted.

if i don't go to this party, i might end up be outcasted again. besides, i have taehyung with me.

what could go wrong?

i smiled and nodded, "i think it'll be fun."

a smile grew on taehyung's face.

"then let's party."


	8. party

**dahyun**

taehyung pulled up his car onto a road that was filled with people. all from our school. there were people already drunk, dancing in small groups. beer bottles laid everywhere. couples making out in different spots.

after parking the car, taehyung and i made our way towards the entrance.

it was a different story inside the house.

everywhere i looked, i could see people drunk. loud music was playing which vibrated the floorboards under us. it was a whole new world.

"taehyung! dahyun! you made it!" we heard a loud voice coming from a distance.

kai came strolling towards us. he grinned and handed each of us a red cup. "glad you guys came. we're about to play truth or dare, wanna join?" he asked.

before me or taehyung could answer, kai already dragged us into another room where there was less people.

there was a circle of people with a beer bottle spinning in the middle.

"we have extra players!" kai exclaimed, pulling us down to sit with them. i scooted closer to taehyung and eyed everyone in the circle.

i didn't know anyone except..jimin.

our eyes met and i could feel a shiver travel up my spine. he stared at me as a girl was clinging onto him, she told him something but he ignored her, his attention was solely on me.

"alright, let's start. jimin, your turn. spin the bottle," kai spoke out. jimin smirked and spun the bottle, round and round. my eyes soon got dizzy looking at it.

the bottle soon stopped.

on me.

everyone got excited and awaited jimin's question. taehyung sensed something bad happening so he moved closer to me. i, on the other hand was already sweaty and anxious.

"truth or dare, dahyun?" jimin asked with a hint of darkness in his voice. everyone waited for my answer.

i stuttered and shakily replied, "uh..um..truth."

jimin's smirk grew. he cleared his throat and asked me.

"did you kill my parents?"

the air grew silent. everyone had their eyes on me.

i closed my eyes and drew in a deep breath. 

before i could reply, taehyung beside me spoke up. "you already know she didn't do it so stop being a dick and move on." people snickered at his comment, looking at jimin who seemed angry at taehyung.

"did i ask you? was it your turn? i don't think so," jimin retaliated, sending him an ignorant look. taehyung chuckled and fought back, "she doesn't have to answer because i already did. so _drop_ it."

jimin clenched his fists and sent shooting glares at taehyung who also seemed to grow angry. i looked at taehyung and put a hand on his, trying to calm him down.

"taehyung, come on. let's go," i spoke quietly, wanting to stop this before it got worse.

"look who's defending her. we all know you just want to get in between her legs," jimin commented with a snicker.

that did it.

taehyung charged towards jimin.


	9. truck

dahyun

it all happened so fast.

taehyung got up and charged towards jimin, gripping his collar and shoved him to the ground. everyone was surprised and started cheering on the fight. taehyung lifted his fist and sent it straight into the other's jaw. jimin fought back with the same level of strength.

"taehyung!" i yelled, eyes widening at the scene in front of me.

i got up and tried grabbing onto taehyung but failed. jimin grunted and pushed taehyung to the ground, setting a hard punch on his face.

"taehyung! please!" i yelled again, desperately trying to stop this fight.

things were getting out of hand, taehyung's long leg accidentally knocked over the large t.v, smashing it into pieces.

that was it.

kai decided to stop them so he gripped onto jimin and pulled him away, giving me the perfect way to taehyung.

i rushed over to him, crouching beside him on the ground. i examined his injured face with a frown. "you idiot," i muttered. taehyung stared at my worried expression and quietly apologised, "sorry." i looked at him, shaking my head and gripped his hands, pulling him up.

"let's get outta here," i stated, helping him off the ground. jimin was already in the other room with kai, still cursing about taehyung.

i led taehyung outside, helping him walk down the steps to a small bench on the side of the house. he sat down with a sigh, rubbing his neck.

"i can't believe you did that," i spoke, trailing my hands to his bleeding nose.

i was completely oblivious to the way he staring at me. completely oblivious to the fact that our faces were only inches apart.

"does it hurt?" i asked, looking into his eyes. he smiled softly, staring deeply into my eyes. i couldn't help but catch a slightly pinkish tint on his cheeks.

"you feeling okay?" i asked again, raising in eyebrow. taehyung's smile widened and he responded with, "better than okay."

i chuckled slightly and smiled, "that's good to hear. do you wanna go? we could go somewhere way better than this place." taehyung nodded, replying with, "just what i was thinking. let's go."

we held each other's hands as we walked out. i smiled, this was nice. i never imagined having someone as sweet as taehyung in my life. it was really nice.

the streets were less crowded than before, only a few people stood chatting among themselves. we crossed the street towards taehyung's car. only then, i realised i forgot my jacket inside.

taehyung noticed this and quickly offered, "i'll get it for you, you stay here." before i could object, he was gone. i watched as he dashed back inside the house, only to quickly dash out again, approaching me.

i stared at him, noticing a different light around him that i never noticed before.

he was an angel.

my angel.

in this moment, everything was perfect.

but i spoke too soon.

a truck made its way down the street, travelling at lightening speeds. taehyung was beginning to cross the road. his eyes were on me, unaware of the huge truck.

shit.

'she's so cute,' taehyung thought as he gripped onto my jacket.

he heard a loud horn and turned his head, his eyes widening at the sight of a truck raging towards him.

he's going to get hit.

"taehyung!" i screamed, taking a step towards him. 

taehyung’s eyes widened at the sight and looked back at my panicked state. before i could take another step, he stopped me.

“stop!” he yelled at me, making my body rigid in place. looking into his eyes, i saw nothing but remorse.

a tear cascaded down my cheek as he smiled softly, telling me it was okay.

bringing his arm back, taehyung threw my jacket which landed on my face, blocking my vision.

it took me a second before i could process anything.

and then.. i heard a terrible crunch sound.

no...

i quickly peeled away the jacket, regaining my vision.

my heart stopped.

the truck zoomed past..

and taehyung was gone.


	10. rip

**dahyun**

"we regret to inform you that kim taehyung was killed in a truck accident last night. rest in peace, kim taehyung. our hearts are with you." the principal of the school spoke into the microphone, tears welling up in her eyes.

i sat with the other students, looking composed on the outside when on the inside..

i was a complete wreck.

after the incident last night, my whole world changed. not because i just lost my best friend..but because it was my fault.

i should have pushed him away, i should have saved him.

_it's all my fault._

i felt a tap on my shoulder. turning my head back, i looked at a fellow classmate who stared at me with dark eyes.

"was he another one of your victims? you pushed him in front of that truck right?" he whispered with a sly smile on his face.

it took a couple of moments for me to register what he just said. my mouth formed a grimace and replied, "i would never..." but my words drifted away.

there was no point.

i was always going to accused of being a killer.

so why keep trying?

the day continued to roll along, i was sitting alone at lunch. i looked at the free seat next to me, my eyes instantly welled up thinking about who should be seated there.

_taehyung..i just want him back._

"oi! psycho bitch! you decided to kill taehyung too, eh?" a group of guys from the soccer team approached me. they all had a dark glint in their eyes, ready to kill anything.

i had enough of this.

i stood up and walked away...only to be pulled back.

"we're not letting you go that easy. bitches like you need to rot in hell," a guy told me, gripping onto my wrist.

i winced sightly and quietly muttered, "i didn't do it." he tightened his grip on my wrist, causing a sharp pain to course through my arm.

"what did you say? of course it was you. you were the only one there!" he yelled, growing angry by the second. i cowered in fear slightly. another guy stood besides him, i eyed his water bottle in his hand.

goosebumps rose on my skin as he unscrewed the cap and tilted it over my head, spilling its contents on my head. the chilling sensation caused me to gasp loudly.

water..too much water..

a sudden flash zapped through my eyes. i lost feelings of my legs. blackness clouded my vision.

soon after..i was gone.


	11. soup

**dahyun**

"dahyun, you okay?" a soft voice called out.

my tired eyes slowly opened. a figure sat next to me, he held my cold hands.

"dahyun?" he called out again.

i turned my head as my eyes landed on his form. my breath hitched at the back of my throat.

"taehyung?" i wearily asked, gobsmacked by his casual self sitting there with a small smile. he simply nodded as a response, squeezing my hand gently.

"you're alive?" i questioned, slowly becoming hysterical. my friend i've grown to love and cherish who i thought got crushed by a truck was not dead but..very alive.

"of course i am. did you really think i would leave you alone in this cruel world?" he raised an eyebrow and gave me a questioning look.

i smiled and shook my head, i still couldn't believe it.

"it's sad that we never got to hang out after that party.." he said, suddenly sounding completely different.

i frowned slightly and stared at him, replying quietly, "it was my fault..i shouldn't have gone in the first place. i should have listened to you."

there was a pause.

"yeah..it is your fault.." he said quietly. i furrowed my eyebrows and looked at his eyes which seemed to change from soft to dark.

"wha-"

"you killed me, dahyun," he interrupted me, staring at me with darkened eyes. his eyes were darker than the night sky.

he continued, "you killed me just like you killed jimin's parents. i should have stayed away from you when i had the chance."

upon hearing that, tears immediately welled up in my eyes.

my lips quivered as i spoke, "t-taehyung, i didn't mean to."

taehyung immediately fell to the ground.

"stop! dahyun! stop, you're hurting me!" taehyung covered his face with his hands and cowered away from me.

"i'm not hurting you! i would never do that!" i yelled back, trying to calm him down. i coached near his body on the ground.

"dahyun! dahyun!" he screamed relentlessly.

i reached out and gripped his hand, taking it away from his face. i looked at him and he looked at me. i said, "taehy..." but my words drifted away into nothing.

the face in front of me couldn't be put into words.

it was taehyung but..with bloody, butchered and sickening wounds on his skin.

"dahyun!" he screamed.

_that was when i woke up._

"taehyung.." i called out into the thin air.

no one replied.

my tired eyes slowly adjusted to my surroundings. i was at home, on my bed.

alone.

no taehyung.

'it was a dream..' i thought, trying to catch my breath.

my throat was extremely dry so i looked for water. instead, i found a bowl of soup sitting next to my bed. a note attached to it.

it read, ' _eat it otherwise you might get sick - jimin_ '

after reading the note, i felt my blood boiling.

taking the soup in my hands, i threw the bowl towards the wall.

_**crack** _

tears cascaded down my eyes as i stared at the million pieces of the ceramic bowl mixed in with the puddle of soup on the floor.

'fuck you, jimin..it's your fault taehyung's dead..' i mentally cursed.

if he hadn't invited us to the party, if he hadn't made taehyung punch him, if he hadn't just left us alone...

i would have woken up with taehyung by my side..

but..

i'm alone..

and now.. i'm broken..


	12. leave

**dahyun**

it's been two weeks.

no one came to look for me..no one even cared for my absence. i spent those two weeks at home, on my bed..wallowing in despair.

i missed taehyung..so much. i think about him every minute of the day.

'please come back,' i chanted repeatedly in my head, praying with my eyes closed.

my heartbeat fastened when i heard the doorbell ring.

somebody's here.

i moved with lightening speed. somewhere lodged in my heart i was hoping it was taehyung, returning back into my arms and telling me everything was okay.

when i opened the door, it wasn't him.

"dahyun.."

all the happiness built up in my body drained out. i eyed the figure with a stoney expression.

"what do you want?" i asked quietly with creased eyebrows.

jimin was staring at me with indescribable eyes. he cleared his throat and muttered, "i just wanted to check up on you. you haven't been at school lately so.."

“i'm fine, just leave me alone," i responded, going to close the door but he lodge his foot between the door, preventing me from closing it.

“look, you're locking yourself up in that room and it's not he-" he spoke but i interrupted him, "i don't have time for your shit, jimin. just fucking leave."

jimin’s anger rose inside of him and he held the door open, harshly saying, "you think i want to be here? i'm here because certain people are coming to-"

i interrupted him again, "shut the fuck up, jimin! do you not know anything? you’re the reason for this pain! i don't want you and i don't need you so _fuck off._ "

my anger spilled into each word, making jimin's body stiff. he instantly stopped talking.

silence.

we stared at each other, pain seeped through my eyes. i was about to break down any second.

breaking the silence, i gritted my teeth and whispered, "i'm a murderer, remember? you think i killed your parents.. and now taehyung..so stop pretending like you care and leave."

jimin didn't respond. he just stood there.

and then, he said it.

"i'm not leaving.."

nothing had me prepared for that.

he looked at me with intense eyes, "i'm not leaving,” he repeated.

jimin reached over and gripped my wrist, dragging me out of the doorway. i was in complete shock but before i could object, he said, "let's go,” before dragging me into the unknown.

what the fuck is he doing?


	13. bridge

**dahyun**

"what are you doing? i fucking told you i don't want to go anywhere," i told him as he dragged me down the street.

"i'm taking you away for a while," he muttered, eyes trained on the road ahead of him.

"what?" i retaliated, absolutely confused.

a heavy motor car turned into the street. i felt jimin's grip on my wrist tense and he quickly turned around towards me.

"be quiet," he whispered and wrapped his other arm around me, pulling me into his chest.

"j-jimin?" i stuttered, trying to push away from his chest. he shushed me and hugged my body, walking me backwards towards a brick wall.

he bent his head down and whispered in my ear, "that car coming towards us, it's the group of guys who tried to hurt you. they're after you again."

i looked up at his face and then eyed the car that was slowly driving up the street. inside was the same guys who poured water on me the other day.

_shit._

jimin could sense my fear and placed a hand on the back of my head, pushing me back into his chest.

as soon as the car drove past us, jimin instantly let go and walked away. i blinked twice, not knowing what just happened.

"come on, let's go," jimin said quietly, looking over his shoulder. i nodded quickly and followed close behind him.

i started thinking, 'did jimin really save me from those guys? if i was inside my house right now, my life would have been cut short..'

i looked at the back of jimin's head.

'what's up with him? i thought he hated me?'

"dahyun," he said, snapping me out my thoughts.

"huh?"

"we're here."

i creased my eyebrows in confusion and looked ahead of me.

we were at han river.

i looked at jimin and questioned, "why did you bring me here?" jimin contently stared at the bridge and shrugged.

"i always come here when i'm upset."

"oh," i replied softly.

"let's go," jimin said, walking across the bridge until he stopped halfway.

we stood together in silence, watching the flowing water below us. i watched the different cyclic waves of the water, how they drifted together.

my eyebrows creased slightly. something about the water made me feel..weird. it was suddenly really hard to breath. i placed a hand on my chest, feeling my heart starting to accelerate.

the water...it reminded me of something.

 _'it's okay..'_ a gentle voice spoke in my head, causing me to twist my head violently towards the sound.

'the fuck was that,' i thought. my breathing started coming in short intakes.

jimin looked at my panicked state, wondering what was going on.

"dahyun?" he called out, making my head snap towards him.

 _'it's okay, dahyun,'_ the mysterious voice called out again.

soon after that, my eyes failing me. everywhere i looked, there was water. everywhere.

i'm going to drown. i couldn't breath, i couldn't speak.

i've felt this sick feeling before..couple of weeks ago when those guys poured water on me.

it's always to do with water that i get this sick feeling in my stomach.

that made me realise...am i scared of water?

that was the last thing that crossed my mind before i lost my senses. my body became limp, my vision darkened, muffled sounds from jimin brushed my ears, my mouth was dry...i lost control.

"dahyun!" jimin yelled as i fell over the bridge.

i'm falling.

falling not only into the river but also into my darkest fear.

water.


	14. cpr

**jimin**   
  
  


"dahyun!" i yelled as i watched dahyun's body fall over the bridge. i quickly reached out my hand to grab her but was too slow.

she fell into the water, creating a loud splash. her figure sunk into the icy cold water.

my brain went into full panic.

i didn't think twice, i lifted my leg up and jumped off the edge of the bridge.

i dived into the water after her, letting the chilling water consume me. my hands started pushing into the water and my legs kicked fast behind me, propelling myself towards her.

there was movements from dahyun, no clawing the thin liquid that invaded her lungs. just a few air bubbles coming out from her lips, moving away with a slight angle. she floated at the bottom of the lake ground like a rag doll.

when i was close enough, i gripped her waist, pulling her towards me and started swimming back to the surface.

i gasped for air as i pulled my head out. keeping dahyun close to me, i grunted as i swam to the edge of river to the surface.

when i made it, i was breathless. i laid dahyun on her back and caught my breath.

looking at her pale friend, i wondered, 'what is up with her?' she looked lifeless, so tired and dreary.

almost like her soul left her body.

i had to admit, it was partly my fault.

for the past three years, i made her life a living hell. i had a reason to though, she didn’t twice before killing my parents.

the fact that i saved her, twice, just made me realise how stupid i was to do those things for her.

i shouldn’t even be here, i shouldn’t have saved her.

she’s my enemy and she always will be.

brushing my hair back, i lifted myself up and turned to walk away. 

taking one..two..three..four..steps, i soon stopped. peering over my shoulder, i scanned her one more time.

then i realised, she wasn’t breathing.

_shit._

i quickly shifted myself towards her again, pressing a finger on her pulse.

_thank goodness, she’s still alive._

my mind in full focus. she’s not breathing but how do i revive her?

i knew the only way to get her breathing again was cpr.

_mouth to mouth, cpr._

closing my eyes, i sighed in annoyance at the fact that i needed to do this. but, it was the only way to get her breathing again.

i prepared myself and leant in towards her face. i pinched her nose and hovered my lips over hers.

i hesitated.

_why was it so hard?_

squeezing my eyes shut, i placed my lips gently on dahyun's. my heart skipped a beat, the feeling of her lips on mine was..nice.

'the fuck, jimin?' i thought, shaking the thought away.

i heaved in a breath and blew a puff of air into her. pulling away, i placed my hands near her ribcage and started pumping onto her chest.

'come on, come on,' i pleaded, working hard to save a life.

_come on, dahyun._

_come back.._


	15. memory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this chapter must appear confusing but don't worry, everything will clear up later :D

**dahyun**

_splash!_

we were underwater, trapped.

 _'you'll be fine..don't worry,'_ a man with a soft voice told me.

i turned my head towards the sound, but everywhere i looked, there was [water. ](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b3/af/5a/b3af5a95a414f2882f6d582c0c5ad0d5.gif)

neglecting my sense of sight, i gripped onto the man’s arm because i was scared.

_where am i? where are we?_

a box. we were trapped inside a box under water.

water soon started filling inside the box, making me see the near end of my life.

i looked at the figure beside me, he was busy doing something.

i watched him, completely calm. the water, now up to my knees.

he was now blowing up something like a balloon.

‘igloo! your own inflatable igloo!’ it said on the branding.

he eventually stopped blowing and gripped onto my arm, telling me to, ‘get in quickly.’

i got [inside ](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b0/06/85/b00685e7861e80c4aeeaf9f191136344.gif)the inflatable igloo, waiting for him to come inside after me.

_he didn’t._

my eyes searched around, i noticed how the water was now halfway filled. the man near the igloo, holding onto the opening to prevent any water from going inside to invade my baby lungs.

my eyes stopped on the floating figure in front of me, he stared at me with soft eyes. those eyes..they seemed so familiar.

_who are you?_

the box was now completely water, no air left. i watched as the man held his breath, giving me a thumbs up.

i stared at him with sadness seeping from my eyes.

_he sacrificed his life for me.._

the man noticed my tears and pushed in his hand to hold mine. i [gripped](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/1e/58/b2/1e58b290adb91d761a705c85ccc44437.gif) onto it with dear life.

he smiled in reassurance..i smiled back.

it was only a minute later when i saw his body jerk in abnormal ways.

soon, it stopped.

his grip on my arm became loose. everything inside me broke at that point..he’s dead.

_he lost his life trying to save mine.._

his lifeless body [floated](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/49/f9/c1/49f9c193b0612cbb75a261989b1e951c.gif) in front of me, outside the inflatable castle that i was in.

i felt fear, nothing else.

but soon..

_i felt nothing._


	16. prove

**dahyun**

that was when i woke up.

repeatedly blinking my eyes, i tried to re-adjust myself to my surroundings.

a figure hovered over me, murmuring inaudible things to me. a couple of second went by before i could finally decipher what it was saying.

"dahyun, are you okay?"

jimin.

i opened my eyes fully and looked at him who crouched over me with a worried expression.

'what..' i thought. my body was not only soaked with water but soaked with so many emotions.

_what did i just see in that dream? it looked so real..like it happened before.._

my voice croaked out, "i'm fine." i struggled to get up and looked at him.

his delicate brown eyes peered at me. i stared back, feeling another emotion rose from within me.

'wait..those eyes..they're so familiar. too familiar,' i told myself, creasing my eyebrows at the thought.

_those eyes..i saw them in the dream..that man..who saved me._

then it clicked.

oh..my..god.

my eyes widened in shook. i gaped my mouth wide and yelled excitedly, "jimin!"

he was taken back and looked at me weirdly. "what?" he asked.

"jimin, oh my god!" i yelled again.

he scoffed and rolled his eyes, saying again, "what? what's wrong?” 

"i saw something! ..like a vision..like a memory! something that happened that day! that day you lost your parents!" 

an almost disgusted look arose on jimin's face, he replied rudely, "you mean the day you fucking killed my parents?"

i shook my head quickly and retaliated, “no, i saw something that proves that i didn't kill them that day. i saw something!"

jimin rolled his eyes again and stood himself up, muttering, “i don’t have time for this shit.”

i wasn’t giving up that easily.

standing up with my head slightly wobbly, i followed the fast-paced jimin.

“trust me, jimin! i know something happened that we don’t know about! something that tells us what actually happened to your parents!” i yelled, trying to keep close behind him.

“you just saw a dream, it doesn’t mean anything,” he responded.

“no, it wasn’t a dream because it felt..too real! it was a vision of the past! i saw the past!”

jimin groaned and ruffled his hair, “you’re crazy in the head, you didn’t see the past.”

i stopped walking and clenched my fists together, i said, “i saw your dad.”

jimin stopped walking.

“i saw your dad..he saved my life when we were trapped in some kind of box..”

he didn’t respond so i continued, “you’ve been tormenting me for the past three years..i don’t think i can handle another three. please...i need to prove that i’m innocent.”

jimin turned around to face me, he stared at me blankly and spoke, “what do we do then? we can’t exactly travel back in time.”

i shook my head.

“no..but we can go back where it all started.”

jimin knew exactly what i was talking about.

"the sea port of seoul."


	17. port

**jimin**   
  


"are you sure it's here?" i asked, walking behind dahyun. she looked at the rusty old sign that read, 'the port of seoul.'

she nodded with a slight frown and started fiddling with her fingers, something she does when she's nervous.

i stood beside her as we stood by the entrance of the place. the place where everything started.

to be honest, i was nervous too but..i know what i saw and dahyun was the one who killed my parents..

i just know it.

_three years ago at same place, same time:_

"jimin, let's play cops and robbers!" a little and cheerful dahyun beamed at her childhood best friend, jimin. he nodded and said, "you be the robber, i'm counting to sixty seconds. starting now!"

as he started counting, dahyun ran off to hide. they played this game occasionally while their fathers worked.

jimin and dahyun's fathers were partners at work, they both worked at the sea port of seoul. while they worked in the office, both their kids would play outside while their wives worked at the nearby preschool.

jimin enclosed his eyes with his small hands, he started counting to sixty.

he was always good at this game, dahyun was so easy to find.

"sixty," he ended, turning around and sprinted towards the direction of dahyun.

jimin heard some loud footsteps and a smile cracked on his face.

'she's close,' he thought to himself, turning a corner quickly.

only to collide with another tall figure, jimin landed on the ground with a thud. he looked up to see dahyun's father, wearing a face full of anger.

he hovered over jimin and reached down, grabbing the younger's collar and pulling him up. He brought jimin close to his face and angrily spat out, "your friend, dahyun? She killed your father and mother."

upon hearing those words, anyone would feel broken. that was what ten year old jimin felt at that moment.

he didn't want to believe it, of course.

"i don't believe you," a brave jimin retorted, earning a tightened grip on his collar by mr kim.

"why don't you see for yourself?" mr kim pushed jimin so he would see dahyun and mr park from a distance. 

jimin's confused eyes wandered on the two figures. dahyun violently pushed his father into an open container and slammed the door closed. 

mr kim whose grip was still strong on jimin smirked and said, "see? she pushed him inside, she killed him. she pushed your mother off the docks as well."

"kim dahyun is a killer."

_end flashback:_

"jimin?"

i woke up from my trance, looking over at dahyun. she looked at him, "i said do you want to go?"

her eyes stared at me, those same eyes who killed my parents three years ago, at this very place. my fists clenched tightly in anger.

_she was the robber who stole my parents away from me..i failed as a cop to save them._

dahyun could sense a change in my behaviour and told me quietly, "do you want to find out the truth or not?"

i breathed in a couple of breaths and nodded timidly.

"let's go."


	18. fled

**dahyun**

i looked around the place, slowly walking deeper into the port. it was dark and abandoned, the containers were growing old with its sun-bleached exterior and peeling off paint.

i bit my lip. a shiver ran through my body like an electric current.

with jimin beside me, we waded into the office located by the docks. sucking in a breath, i hesitantly lifted my hand and knocked on the door.

there was a feeling of anxiousness bubbling inside me, i knew from jimin's foot tapping that he was feeling the same.

there was no answer.

i knocked again, hoping there was still someone working here.

after another minute of complete silence, jimin got frustrated and pushed it open.

i looked inside.

the floor was dustier, the paint on the walls were torn away and the furniture was broken. it was like all the life escaped after that day.

jimin let out a cringe as he stepped inside. he started walking around, looking at the scattered documents on the ground and the broken photo frames.

i walked in the opposite direction, looking around.

that was when i found a body laid across an old chair. goosebumps rose on my skin and a scream escaped my lips.

jimin jolted in shock and looked at me.

another scream escaped my lips when the body moved.

"woah, woah!" the figure yelled, getting up from its laid position. jimin rushed towards dahyun's side, watching the figure with big eyes.

"who the fuck are you?" jimin asked.

"i'm ray, who the fuck are you?"

jimin creased in eyebrows in confusion but soon came to a realisation. he pointed at ray and said, "you! i remember you! you worked with our dads!"

i was completely confused.

ray looked taken back and eyed the two of us more carefully. his eyes widened in happiness and he yelled, "dahyunie and jiminie!"

_oh, i remember him now._

he used to play with us when our dads were busy. he was gentle and sweet.

we started conversing with each other, happy to be reunited. jimin looked at him with glee, a smile on his face.

the moment jimin asked about _that day_ , ray turned quiet.

"do you remember what happened that day?" jimin asked.

ray shook his head and said, "i only remember them being in an argument. dahyun's dad was really angry at your dad, jimin. then i don't know.."

i looked down at my feet.

_so much for that..we'll never find out what happened that day._

ray noticed our change in mood and quickly said, "but! i do know something!"

our heads lifted up together, looking at him. he spoke, "after that day, dahyun's father ran away with someone. he wanted a new life so i let him take my car, i sure hoped he had taken you with him but i guess not."

i furrowed my eyebrows and said, "he ran away? do you know where?"

ray thought for a moment and said, "somewhere quiet..jeju island! he went there, i'm sure of it!" 

i didn't know what to say, she hadn't seen her father in three years.

'should i go to him?' i thought.

jimin snapped my thoughts and said, "you realise this doesn't help prove anything?"

i didn't reply, frowning.

an idea struck in my head, i snapped my head towards jimin and said, "wait, maybe i can still prove that i'm a not murderer!"

jimin rolled his eyes and before he could say anything stupid, i spoke, "we need to find my dad. he should be the one person who knows better than any of us! let's get our asses to jeju island."

i looked at him with pleading eyes.

jimin thought about it and eventually sighed, knowing i was right.

he nodded.

"then what are we waiting for? pack your bags and let's go."


	19. go

**dahyun**

the mountains on the horizon clustered in a bunch. i imagined the mountains shivering under their white fur coats, wishing for the snow to melt away. leaning my head against the murky glass window, i stared at the white scenery. the seats under me were damp and the noise inside the van was increasingly getting louder.

after deciding to find my missing father, jimin and i caught a ride with some people on a van. everyone on board was either covered in tattoos, smoking a joint or pierced in every part of their body. jimin initially wanted to reject their offer of a ride, but they seemed nice and was willing to help so i insisted.

we've been travelling for more than three hours on the dirt road. jimin sometimes fell asleep but woke up when the lady beside him danced in her seat at odd occasions.

"potty break!" the driver yelled, pulling into an empty gas station. he stopped the van and the rumbling feeling under our seats eventually stopped.

"imma get a drink," jimin told me.

"me too, " i replied, quietly trailing behind him. stepping down from the van, i instantly felt the chilling air fill my lungs. there was a crunch of the icy layer on the ground as we walked. i followed jimin into the store.

there was hardly anything inside except for the man standing behind the cash register, chewing his gum obnoxiously loud.

"i'm just gunna get water, everything in here looks fucking rank," jimin uttered, walking towards the dusty fridge. i followed close behind him, grabbing a bag of chips on the way.

jimin cringed in disgust, eyeing the several water bottles. he looked away, muttering, "nevermind, i'm not thirsty anyway. let's just pay for those chips and leave."

i nodded, following him to the cash register.

our eyes perked when we heard something unusual. “what was that?” i questioned, looking out through the glass windows.

it sounded like motorcycles but..a big group of them.

“i don’t know..but i don’t like it,” jimin muttered.

the cashier spoke over the noise, “that will be five bucks,” oblivious to the approaching sound of a biker gang zooming through the entrance and stopped a few meters from the van.

our heads snapped towards the sudden appearance.

a huge cloud of dust dispersed into the air. everyone had their eyes trained on the biker gang who cockily stood with their helmets in their hands. i eyed their leather jackets, slicked-back hair and their guns lodged in their pockets.

there was silence, no one moved a muscle.

one of the gang members turned his head, gazing at the van. a smirk played on his lips as he ran his fingers through his hair. he turned back to look at the store. through the glass, his eyes landed on me and jimin.

“let’s go, fellas,” he spoke, starting to walk towards the store. his dozen pack of men followed him, entering the store one by one.

soon, we were surrounded by them.

well shit.


	20. taken

the air was silent except for the scared cries from the cashier. he wasn't the same man we met fifteen minutes ago, he now had his tail between his legs and begged for mercy.

my eyes landed on the _guns_ in the black-clothed people's hands. i went blank, staring at them who each had their own style of tattoos and piercings. jimin stayed close behind me, eyeing them too.

a guy who looked like the leader stepped forward, he aimed his gun at the cashier, tugging his finger on the trigger.

"money, now," he uttered in a dangerously low voice. his hair was slicked back, his many piercings in both ears, his black heavy boots. i squinted my eyes at the writing on his leather jacket.

'votty,' it read.

the cash register had tears streaming down his eyes, his lips started trembling as he said, "please, i have a family! please!"

i stared at the bizarre scene in front of me. 

‘if we run now, we could get out of here while they’re distracted,’ i thought, biting my lip as i travelled my eyes towards the exit.

reaching my hand back, i touched jimin’s arm lightly to get his attention. without moving his head, jimin moved his eyes onto me. i motioned towards the entrance and mouthed, ‘let’s run.’

jimin didn’t like the idea and timidly shook his head, telling me no.

“give me your fucking money!” the gang member yelled, making the cashier jump out of his skin. he quickly scurried around the cash register, collecting the cash.

‘i’m not staying here another minute,’ i thought before making a run for it. jimin widened his eyes and moved a step after me, saying, “dah-“ but someone placed a hand over jimin’s mouth, grabbing his arms and preventing his movements. jimin tried fighting them off but failed.

i made it to the door and was about to open the door, when a gang member yelled, “if you take one step out that door, we’ll kill your boyfriend.”

i froze.

_shit jimin, why you so slow._

turning around slowly, i looked at the owner of the voice. he had a smug look on his face while saying, “come back here and no one gets hurt.”

‘it’s a trick..it’s always a trick..’ i thought, averting my eyes to jimin who had a gun placed on his head.

‘but jimin..’ i gave in and walked closer towards them.

“but then again,” the gang member spoke, looking at me with dark eyes which made my feet stop in place.

“you’ve already seen our faces.”

as soon as those word escaped his lips, i felt a hand over my mouth. another pair of arms encircled my waist, hosting me up. i kicked my legs around, trying to free myself.

“take them with us,” he spoke loudly, bringing his gun and smacking the cashier across the head, making him cold flat. the gang member dug his fingers into the cash register, grabbing every cent and dime inside.

i looked at jimin who was being tackled by two guys, i tried fighting but when i felt a sharp pain on my head..

when i started seeing black spots appear in the corner of my eyes..

when i couldn’t breath anymore..

that’s when i knew..

we're fucked.


	21. roomie

**dahyun**

"hey...hey...little girl..wake up." 

my tired eyes slowly opened, adjusting itself to the dim light. my body sprawled on a mattress, my mouth really dry and my voice was hoarse as i spoke.

"where am i?"

the little voice replied moments later, "hell. you're in hell." i opened my eyes fully, realising what she said. turning my head, i was surprised to see a small, petite girl with a cute face. she beamed and voiced, "i'm kidding, we're in boot camp."

_boot camp?_

using my maximum strength, i hoisted myself upright to view my surroundings.

_where the fuck am i?_

my eyes landed on nothing but old dusty beds and dirty walls. there was nothing but a few tables and chairs. no colour, just beige. dim lighting caused by the single window on the right wall.

simply put, we were trapped in a box.

"we're in training, it's like an army," the girl spoke after noticing my lack of response. i turned my head to look at her, completely frazzled.

"what? army? i never wanted..the last thing i remember is fighting these people at a gas stati.." my words drifted away as my mind pinpointed something very crucial. _someone_ very crucial.

"wait..where's jimin?" i asked, looking around frantically. 'oh my god, where is he? is he hurt?' i thought, feeling my stomach grow into a nervous pit.

"jimin? oh, you mean your boyfriend? he's in the other section," she said.

"what other section?" i questioned, ignoring the word 'boyfriend.'

"girls and boys can't be together except for lunch," she said, shrugging contently. i blinked, still not understanding my situation. i tried remembering anything that would help..but nothing.

_anything..remember anything, dahyun.._

then the flick of a lightbulb.

"votty?" i said quietly, tilting my head to the memory of the five letter word plastered on the gang member's jacket. the girl nodded and said, "yeah, votty. that's the name of this place"

"and what is it place exactly?"

the girl seemed a little frustration by my never-ending questions but answered anyway, she said, "this bootcamp strives to teach teenagers how to be 'normal'. we basically learn how to be perfect in this judgemental world."

nodding slightly, i asked again, "is this some kind of detention? or like a juvenile? child prison or something?" she shook her head and replied, "the opposite, really. we put ourselves into this institution, it's completely by choice."

"but.. i didn't want to come here, me and my friend were forced here," i retorted.

"well, that's because you did something bad. our leaders sometimes bring in some kids who've been misbehaving badly. you must have done something pretty mean to make them force you. discipline is what they think you both need, so here you are."

i creased my eyebrows, baffled by her response, i spoke, "we were trying to get away from them because they were fucking trying to rob a store!" 

"woah, watch your language. that could take ten noms off," she frowned.

"noms?"

"nom is a point system here, the more points you have, the more perfect you seem and therefore, the sooner you can get out of here," she said, smiling.

i paused, telling her slowly, "you mean..i'm stuck here until i get some number of noms?"

the girl nodded.

"but i can't stay, i need to be somewhere important," i said, thinking to myself, 'now i'm never going to see my dad..i'm never going to prove i'm innocent.'

she noticed my change of expression.

"don't worry, it may seem tough right now but in the end, you'll walk out of here completely brand new! i promise, you'll be fine. i've been here for more than two years and i'm still breathing. by the way, what's your name?" she brought her hand out.

i looked at her hand, shaking it timidly a second later.

"kim dahyun, and you?"

"you can call me momo, nice to meet you..roommate."

i stared at her, smiling slightly.

our little moment was interrupted when a loud bell broke the silent air. momo stood up from her position and dragged me up with her.

"lunch time."


	22. nom nom

**dahyun**

momo opened the door, swiftly pulling me out.

"lunch is served downstairs," momo explained, walking down a dark hallway. several other people started exiting through their doors, joining momo and i.

i noticed how we were all wearing the same clothes. a white jumpsuit with white sneakers.

_this has to be a dream..this can't be real._

everyone was expressionless as they marched together through the doors to a large white hall. momo continued tugging on my arm, looking around the several tables and chairs.

"that's where i usually sit," she muttered to me, approaching her seat before making herself comfortable.

"sit, dahyun. they're going to serve our food soon."

i nodded blankly, taking my seat. my mind was boggling with many thoughts.

_i can’t stay here._

i whispered to her with pleading eyes, "listen, momo. i can't stay, i have somewhere really important to be."

momo chuckled and shushed me by placing a finger on my lips. "the food's coming, you have to be quiet."

soon there was people walking in with silver plates, placing them in front of each seated person. i looked at the plate, a small portion of food was laid.

not feeling hungry, i averted my attention from the plate to the other people around the hall. they ate in complete silence, no small talk among them. i noticed how awfully young they all looked too.

i looked at a specific guy with brown hair, he turned his head and we made eye contact.

my heart stopped.

_jimin..._

i was about to stand up and run over to him, thanking the gods that he was okay.

but i didn't.

jimin looked at me with intense eyes; like he was trying to tell me something. he held a fork in his hand and started eating, breaking our contact.

i looked away, grabbing my fork and beginning to eat as well. 

_i need to talk to him._

everyone continued eating in silence until another bell rang through the hall. this made people stand up with their plates. momo uttered, "we have to wash our plates now."

i rose from my seat, taking my plate and followed her, trying to keep my watch on jimin. there was too many people, and i'm short, so i lost him. frustrated, i sighed heavily and stood behind momo.

until someone grabbed my arm, pulling me out of the line. my eyes widened, looking at the culprit only to find jimin pulling me into a dark hallway.

"jim-" i started saying but he stopped me, pushing me against a wall. he leant close to my face and whispered hurriedly, "you okay?"

a little taken back, i nodded twice and asked him, "what is this place, i don't like it. we need to get out of here."

jimin bobbed his head and said, "i know..but it's not going to be easy."

i furrowed my eyebrows, "what do you mean? let's just run."

he disliked that idea very much, shaking his head rapidly, "last time you decided to run, we got taken away to some child prison."

rolling my eyes, i retorted, "but we can't stay here, we have to fight our way o-" he interrupted me again.

"listen to me, i heard some serious fucked up shit happens if we don't follow the rules," he whispered hastily, leaning closer. "we have to blend in and get those nom points. it's the only way to get out of here."

i stayed quiet, looking at him.

_if momo had been here for two years,_ _what hope of getting out is there for us?_

"dahyun? please," jimin pleaded.

i sighed, finally giving in.

"okay.."

he patted my shoulder and pulled away. before he left, i heard him mutter something.

"good luck."


	23. forgive

**dahyun**

"now that we're finished eating, it's time to start our day," momo said. i nodded, following her gruelling pace without complaining.

we were walking into another hallway, reaching a door at the end. instead of people entering through the door, they formed a line outside.

i stood behind momo, suddenly having a thought, "how much noms do we need to pass? like how much points do we need to earn so we can leave?" she looked my way and replied quickly, "one hundred. if you get one hundred noms, you can leave."

i nodded, saying, "how many noms do you have?"

momo started calculating in her head to make sure before saying, "right now..thirty-four." 

my mouth fell in shock, i quietly exclaimed, “thirty-four?! you've been here for two years and you only have thirty-four noms?! how am i supposed to-" momo shushed me, saying to my anxious state, "don't worry, i don't have much because i'm bad at the tests."

"test? what test?" i questioned.

she didn’t reply. instead, she just smiled uncannily, whispering a,"you'll see,” which sent a chilling sensation up my spine.

we waited for nearly half an hour. one by one, a person would walk in through the doors, except.. they never came back out.

it was soon momo's turn. she waved at me before entering through those doors. i waited nervously for my turn by fiddling with my fingers and tapping my foot.

then..it was my turn. the door opened and a voice told me to enter.

so i did, walking inside slowly while expecting the worst case scenario.

to my surprise, there was nothing inside except for a single chair. i sat down, feeling my stomach grow into a nervous pit as i thought about what would happen.

the lights in the room gradually dimmed. eventually, it was pitch black.

suddenly, a projection of a white screen appeared in front of me. i watched, my clammy hands gripping onto the chair.

the screen showed a few words.

_name : kim dahyun._

_age : 18_

_nom value : **0** points_

_test : 1_

i furrowed my eyebrows, reading the words until the screen changed quickly again.

this time, it read,

' _kim dahyun, your first test is...to forgive your enemies.'_

before i could comprehend what that meant, the screen switched again.

a visual of someone i recognised appeared on the screen, he wore a blank expression as he looked at me. i felt my heart topple over itself as i stared at him back.

_jimin.._

he opened his mouth and uttered strangely, “you killed my parents..how could you think of doing that?”

a sad frown formed on my face as i gripped onto the armrests. i remember him saying those exact words to me three years ago, the week after the incident with his parents.

i remember trying to tell him that i didn’t do it..but he didn’t believe me.

he continued saying with a dark glint in his eyes, “don’t you dare lie to me..i saw you do it..” he took a deep breath and muttered, “i’m going to make your life a living nightmare..”

the screen switched again.

this time, all the memories from jimin tormenting me came bombarding back into my brain. the time when he pushed me over, when he called me names and when he spread rumours about me.

i couldn’t stop watching, my eyes were glued to the screen.

the screen then showed the time when jimin nearly choked me to death. it was all because he thought i threatened his ex-girlfriend. i remember feeling so weak..so scared.

how dare he..

how dare he treat me like that when he never knew the truth.

in an instant, this unexpected burning rage started hissing through my body like a deadly poison. the hot feeling consumed me, destroying all positive perceptions about jimin.

now...i saw nothing but a monster.

but..this bubbling anger soon turned into sorrowful tears. i couldn’t help but cry. i’ve suffered for so long..i’m falling apart and no one can save me.

no one can save me from jimin..

the screen changed again, this time it read the words, ‘do you forgive him?’

after reading the words, i burst into a sob. i cried like there was no tomorrow. 

without any hesitation, i answered, "park jimin...i will never! fucking! forgive! you!!” each words escaping my mouth was pouched with darkness.

i had lost control.

the screen disappeared, the room was pitch black again. my relentless sobbing carried on, i was too daunted to stop.

the last thing i remember seeing on the screen was..

_nom value : **\- 5** points_


	24. chef

**dahyun**

with my tears stained cheeks, i walked out of the testing room.

i was a complete wreck.

momo caught a glance at me and instantly came into my embrace, i trembled beneath her as i tried to grasp what just happened.

"the first test is always the hardest. don't worry, it'll get better soon," momo cooed as she rubbed my back soothingly.

i nodded blankly, staring into thin air. my mind drifted onto something, i quietly uttered in momo's shoulder, "how did they know about my past..it was like they recorded my entire life.."

momo sighed and explained, "it's not really recorded, your mind is playing tricks on you. you imagine all those things they showed on the screen. it’s triggered by your fear. you need to learn to control your mind, then you can pass the test."

she pulled away and smiled at me gently, "come on, we're going to be late to class.”

“what class?” i asked.

“cooking class!"

before i could ask, momo was already pulling me out the door.

"first, cut the meat into evenly sized cubes," the teacher instructed, demonstrating how to cut pieces of meat on the counter. we watched her movements from our little groups. thankfully, i was paired up with momo.

as we started cooking, i asked momo, "why are we learning how to cook?"

momo finished up with her meat and replied, "well, the leaders of votty believe that the perfect person can do everything. that's why we're learning a new skill everyday! today is cooking, tomorrow is sewing and so on."

i nodded, continuing to chop up the raw meat.

"speaking of the leaders, why don't we ever see them? what do they do?" i asked, remembering when jimin and i encountered them at the gas station. it’s their fault i’m stuck in this shit-hole.

"i don't really know but apparently they do good deeds in the community. they try to set us a good example, they're so inspirational," momo spoke absentmindedly.

i internally scoffed and thought, 'yeah, stealing money from a gas station is so inspirational.'

as i prepared the food with momo, i felt someone's eyes on me. i turned my head, only to see jimin staring at me with a bored expression. he was with his group, cutting up meat similar to mine.

his eyes on me suddenly caused a wave of anxiety to rush through my body. i tightened my grip on the knife, feeling my nostrils flare with anger. he noticed my strange demeanour and creased his eyebrows in confusion.

i ignored him, getting back to work.

_screw him._

we were all finished in an hour, i felt accomplished. momo grinned to herself as she ate our food. the teacher momentarily walked out, giving jimin the perfect opportunity to approach me.

"we need to talk," he whispered. i ignored him again, pretending to not hear him.

he rolled his eyes and poked my side, trying to get my attention, he whispered again, "dahyun, i know you can hear me. we need to talk."

momo noticed our little rebuttal and said, "oh, go on dahyun. i'll cover for you if the teacher comes back."

before i could respond, jimin gripped onto my arm and dragged me out of the classroom and into a small closet. his touch on my skin sent my blood boiling again, i've never been so angry at someone before.

every time i see jimin, i just remember all the terrible things he’s done to me.

we walked out of the class and into a closet, where he pushed me against a shelf. he locked the door and turned his body towards me, looking at me with deadpan eyes.

“are you okay? did you have your test today?” he asked quickly.

i just nod, staring back at him.

jimin said, “i had mine too, i got ten noms which i’m glad about. how many do you have?”

_'- 5 noms..and it’s all your fault.'_

i stayed quiet.

jimin clicked his fingers in front of my eyes, he repeated himself, “hello? yo, i’m asking you what your nom value is. the better you do on those tests, the faster we can leave this place.”

my mouth was closed, i had nothing to say.

he started getting agitated by my blank state, he breathed out heavily and asked, “what’s going on? did you see something scary on the test? nothing is real on those screens, it’s all made up.”

at this, my expression turned sour. i looked at him with eyes full of rage.

“it’s..not..fucking..made..up,” i said slowly, gritting my teeth. he stared at me with confused eyes and said, “something’s really wrong with you, that test showed nothing but imaginary things.”

i raised an eyebrow, pointing my finger and jabbing his chest. i asked sarcastically, “wait, what? you’re an imaginary thing? i had no idea.”

a frown formed on his lips as he muttered, “i... was on your test?”

a look of disbelief brushed over my face, i scoffed and answered, “the test asked me to face my fears. so i was confused when they showed me a photo of you..i knew that i wasn’t scared of you.. but then they started showing all the fucked up things you did to me at school.”

he looked at me blankly so i continued, “you hurting me, calling me names..nearly choking me to death..”

jimin was taken back, he gulped nervously and looked down at the ground in shame.

my anger didn’t subside. i let him have it.

“the test wasn't fake, everything they showed was what happened in real life. knowing this, i was literally broken into pieces. i was..am so bloody scared of you. for the past three years, i would dread coming to school because it meant i would have to see you. do you know how many times i tried telling you the truth? i tried so hard..but you never believed me..and you still don’t.”

he didn’t say anything.

i didn’t realise that i was crying, my emotions got to the best of me. i wiped my cheeks quickly.

“seeing you makes me sick, jimin. you carry on this journey without me, i’m done,” i spoke strongly as i turned towards the door.

“stop..” jimin quietly said, gripping onto my arm, stopping me from moving any further.

i tried releasing his hold, telling him, “it’s fucking over, jimin. let go.”

jimin’s grip only tightened, he said in an authoritative tone, “i said stop, didn’t i?”

he pulled my body towards him.

i didn’t see it coming when he placed his lips onto mine.


	25. fear

**dahyun**

the moment jimin kissed me, i was in a whole new world. when his lips latched onto mine, i forgot everything in that moment.

i was stupefied.

jimin's hand previously gripped on my hand moved onto my waist, pushing me against his body. his other hand slithered up to the back of my neck, preventing me from moving.

i didn't kiss him back. why would i?

'because you like him..' a voice called in my head. i mentally scoffed and argued, 'there's no way in fuc...' my thoughts drifted away when jimin started moving his lips sensually against mine.

my heart started feeling excited, pumping blood faster around my body. a dark crimson soon rose onto my cheeks, the shade in which matched jimin's cheeks.

the taste of his sweet lips..it was dangerously addictive. i wanted more..

so i kissed him back, hesitantly. my lips danced a romantic waltz with jimin's, creating a new wave of love between us. my arms moved up to wrap around his neck, deepening our dance.

"dahyun!"

i snapped from my thoughts, blinking my eyes into the current situation i was in. it was the next day, i was standing in line with momo. it was time for my second test.

"you okay? your face is red," momo worriedly commented, putting a hand on my forehead. i nervously chuckled and nodded in reassurance, "i'm fine, i was just thinking about something.."

she noticed my slight smile at the end of my sentence, she teasingly asked, "did something happen between you and jimin yesterday?" 

putting on a disbelieving face, i scoffed and said, "of course not, me and jimin are just friends."

"sure you are, that's why he romantically took you by the hand and dragged you away," momo dramatically exclaimed. i rolled my eyes at her, not wanting to admit the moment we had.

after my kiss with jimin, he held my body close as he started explaining how sorry he was. it was his biggest mistake to assume i killed his parents, he wanted to repay for his mistakes. my heart fluttered when he vowed to protect me. i noticed the sincerity in his eyes, knowing he was telling the truth. i didn't forgive him fully yet..but after he kissed me again, i forgave him. he kissed me sweetly, smiling into the kiss.

i blinked out of my daze again as the door opened, allowing the first person to enter.

'the test is now in session.'

\---

_name : kim dahyun._

_age : 18_

_nom value : - 5 points_

_test : 2_

sitting in my seat again, i stared at the letters on the screen, reading them before they changed quickly.

this time, it read.

_kim dahyun, your second test is to.. face your fears._

the screen switched again.

a guy was presented on the screen. my heart broke instantly and my eyes welled up with tears.

_taehyung.._

i stared at his smiley expression. his radiant and innocent smile never failed to enlighten my day, it was something i missed most about him.

"taehyung.." i mumbled softly, feeling a wave of emotions rush through me.

he did nothing but wave at me, smiling happily. it was like nothing was wrong in the world.. like nothing could break that smile.

i would do anything to see him again..

"dahyun," his deep voice resonated through the screen, satisfying my ears. i smiled sadly as tears flowed down my cheeks.

"i miss you, dahyun," he spoke softly, "i would do anything for you. i would even kill myself for you." he looked at me, stepping away from the screen. he spoke in a deep voice, "i never got to tell you how much i loved you."

my heart clenched as he stood there silently.

that was until something punched taehyung's stomach, making him bend forward in pain. my eyes widened, a scream threatening to spill. another punch on his shoulder, another on his back, more kept coming, it was never-ending.

"stop.." i pleaded with tears streaming down.

_this is a test, dahyun... stop crying. you need the points..the points.._

the invisible force continued beating taehyung, blood started seeping through his shirt. he gagged in misery, falling to the ground.

i noticed how my skin was itched with goosebumps, how my body was trembling uncontrollably, how much my body wanted to shut down. the test was to face my fears..seeing taehyung getting wounded made me want to disappear from this earth.

_that's it..that's my fear._

_i'm scared of taehyung getting hurt._

at this point, taehyung was beaten to a pulp. i couldn't watch anymore. my restricted arms prevented me from bashing out onto the projection screen. i couldn't move which only intensified my raging emotions. with all my might, i screeched loudly.

"taehyung!!" i yelled so loudly, my throat stung from the intensity.

a wounded taehyung looked back at me, smiling with his bruised face. i wanted to yell again but the screen died.

it was pitch black again.

the last thing i remember seeing on the screen was the words..

_'nom value : **\- 10** points'_


	26. friends

**dahyun**

i woke up the next morning. eyes staring up at the ceiling, feeling completely blank.

after my second test yesterday, i was restless. seeing taehyung so wounded, it made me feel sick to watch. i began to feel so much hatred towards votty. whatever system they have here...it's not right.

_i need to get out of here._

sitting in an upright position, i brought my knees to my chest. i needed to think, i need time to recollect myself.

as if momo could read my mind, she asked me, "hey, do you want to go somewhere?" i looked at her, my eyes the colour of burning flesh.

"what?" i murmured.

"i know a place, a secret place. you can relax and calm your thoughts," she said.

i squinted my eyes at her, not believing of such place.

\--

"here we are," momo spoke with a smile. after walking for ten minutes, i didn't expect the scene in front of me. it was a pig farm.

"this?" i motioned towards the pigs, "is the peaceful place you were talking about?"

momo nodded, a smile remained on her face. she said, "pigs are good luck. if you try and recollect your thoughts, you will actually feel a lot better."

she pushed me a little closer to the pigs, telling me, "just trust me on this. it helps me a lot when i'm stressed. look, even jimin's here to help."

i turned my head, only to see jimin approaching me. he smiled towards me.

"i'll leave you two," momo whispered, leaving my side and walking out. i looked at him, feeling slightly nervous, "hey.."

"hey," he said, standing beside me. he looked at the pigs and said, "need to get something out of your chest, too?"

i nodded, pursing my lips slightly.

"before that.." he said softly, grabbing something. i looked at him, he brought out a box of rice balls. i looked at them with confusion.

"huh?"

"eat, you must be hungry. the people here only give us a spoonful to eat," he said, taking one himself and took a bite. i nodded timidly, taking a rice ball.

i took a bite. it tasted like melted butter on my tongue. i blinked, not knowing why this rice tasted so delicious. i took another bite, then another, then another.

before i knew it, tears brimmed in the corner of my eyes. jimin noticed and placed his arm around my shoulder, bringing me closer.

"it's been rough, i know..i'm sorry," he gently spoke. i sniffled, more tears cascaded down. i was at a breaking point, even good rice made me cry.

"i saw..taehyung in my last test.." i muttered, jimin listened attentively. he of all people knew how close i was to taehyung. losing my best friend was the hardest thing. i just wanted taehyung to come back..to cradle me in his arms and tell me everything was okay.

"hey, come on," jimin said, pulling me into a hug. i started crying into his chest, feeling so much ache in my heart.

"i know this is the last thing you want to hear from me..but know that i'm here for you and i'll protect you. i promise i'll get you out of here.." he said, "i know i caused you so much harm..and i'm sorry. i'm really sorry. i was only thinking about myself and i didn't think for one moment about you. i'm so so sorry."

he pulled away, looking at me with an intense stare. i saw him slowly lean towards me, his eyes on my lips. my heart wanted to kiss him too..but i didn't.

i put a hand on his chest, stopping his movements.

without saying anything else, i turned and left the pig farm. taehyung was still on my mind, the test really messed up my brain.

i can't do this anymore.

i'm giving up.


	27. puzzle

_'you'll be fine..don't worry,'_ a man with a soft voice told me.

 _"sorry doesn't bring my parents back, bitch,"_ he cursed, pushing me backwards.

 _"stop!"_ he yelled at me, making my body rigid in place.

i opened my eyes to the new day, momo and i were back in our room. it's been three days since that day at the pig farm. i couldn’t stand to see jimin, see anyone. i was too distraught to think about anything.

these voices in my head, they wouldn't stop either.

i looked at momo who laid on her bed, reading a book, and asked, "hey, can i talk about something?" she looked away from the book, nodding with a smile, "what's up?"

thinking for a couple of moments, i said, "a couple of weeks ago..i saw something. it was like a memory..like something important happened a long time ago...and no one knows about it."

momo raised an eyebrow, nodding for me keep going.

i continued, "the thing is..it was really strange. i was inside a box..and for reason, water started filling up inside. i was with this guy...i don't know who but..this guy..he saved me. he put me inside one of those inflatable castles..but..he died while doing it. i watched him drown..he basically saved my life.."

"wow.." momo whispered, looking at me. i gulped, feeling my throat go dry, "i just..i thought it was jimin's dad..but now i don’t think so..it doesn't fit the description of what happened that day."

"what day? what happened?" she asked.

i sighed, looking at her, "three years ago..i was accused of killing jimin's parents." momo seemed shocked, she nodded and urged me to continue.

“i was accused..but i didn't do it..i know i didn't. my parents and i were friends with jimin's family. we always hung out together. but that day...they all just disappeared. my parents..jimin's parents..all just vanished."

"why were you accused of killing jimin's parents?" momo asked.

"i don't know..jimin told everyone including the police that i did it. he apparently saw me push his dad over the docks. i don't know what happened to his mum..i never saw her."

"and your parents?"

i shrugged, not knowing anything. i fiddled with my fingers, saying, "they filed three missing reports..my parents and jimin's mum. all went missing that day."

"wow...no one found them to this day?" momo asked with creased eyebrows.

i shook my head, "not even a trace. they only found jimin's dad's body in the water, he was dead."

she frowned, looking away.

i looked at her, a slight glimmer of hope in my eyes.

"but recently, me and jimin met an old friend called ray. he told us that my dad was arguing with jimin's dad the same day the accident happened. they had some kind of conflict. then after everything happened, ray said my dad went to jeju island to escape."

“oh! that's great then! you can go find your dad!" momo said with a smile.

i looked at her, saying, "momo, did you forget something? i'm stuck here, i can't leave."

"oh..right," she said, frowning.

"anyway, i know something different happened that day. i saw that memory..of me and jimin's dad in a box..i saw him drown which links back to the police, who found his missing body in the ocean. but..after talking to ray, it didn’t make sense anymore. if both fathers were fighting each other, how could i have been stuck with one of them in a box? another question is why did my dad leave afterwards? why did he leave me alone? i just don’t know.."

“yeah, it’s one big mystery," momo said.

the bell rang, indicating for lunch. i sighed, looking at momo, saying, "thanks for listening..i actually feel a lot better."

she smiled, standing up, "anything for you, dahyunie."


	28. over

**dahyun**

we were having lunch. i sat next to momo, who was practically guzzling her food. peering down at the plate, i wasn't surprised when it only had a small serving of mashed potatoes and a miniature piece of steak.

i looked at the plate belonging to the person sitting in front of me. she was quietly eating her mashed potatoes. i noticed how small her servings were, much smaller than mine. she barely had any meat on there.

_what the fuck?_

was it because she was bigger than me? she weighed more so she got less food. i looked at momo's plate, it contained a big pile of mashed potatoes with a big hunk of meat.

how come i've never noticed this before. but i had to remember, this was votty, a place striving to make everyone 'perfect.' that starts with our weight. people who were on the skinny side had to eat more while others had to eat less.

this angered me a little.

from the corner of my eye, i saw jimin. he was sitting not too far away but was busy talking to someone. i looked away when i heard a loud noise.

a man dropped his plate, spilling its contents all over the floor. this triggered the guards and they started yelling at him. a whistle was blown and the man was dragged out of the room.

i was about to stand up and help the poor guy when jimin cleared his throat loudly, stopping my movements. i looked in his direction. he was shaking his head at me, insisting not to lash out. i sighed and nodded. he was right, i had to be chill.

i looked over at momo, she was casually eating her food as if nothing happened. it was like she was immune to these kinds of things.

this angered me a little bit more.

the lunch room was quiet after that. i slowly ate my food, feeling sick to the stomach. i didn't know how much longer i could stay here, everything was driving me crazy.

then people wearing leather jackets entered the lunch room, they stood around the tables, eyeing us down. i creased my eyebrows before asking momo, “hey, those people are the leaders of this place, right?” momo looked up from her plate and nodded, she replied, “yeah, they like to examine us sometimes while we eat.”

i looked at them. the only other time i met the votty leaders was back at the gas station. they’re the whole reason why jimin and i were stuck in here.

this angered me a little..a lot more.

_how dare they...how dare they.._

i stood up, looking at the leaders with blazing eyes. jimin's eyes widened at my actions, he was going to stop me but it was too late.

"fuck you," i spat out loudly, making the whole room go quiet. the leader’s heads snapped in my direction, watching me.

my inner psyco was released. everything that was bottled up inside me was free. the adrenaline flooded my system, there was no stopping now.

"i have never been more disgusted in anyone other than you. this system..this place is a piece of shit! you are a piece of shit for trying to control everyone's lives like this. how dare you make us wear the same clothes, how dare you make us eat small portions of food, how dare you make us go through painful tests!"

the whole room was dead quiet. the leader watched me with unmoving eyes.

“you're trying to make us into efficient machines that work perfectly...but you have to fucking understand that we are not machines. we are human...and we’re not perfect. we should be able to eat whatever we want and wear whatever the fuck we want. it’s not your choice, it’s ours. it’s our fucking life!"

i paused, taking a deep breath before continuing in a softer tone, "no one is perfect..i’m not, she’s not, he’s not..” i pointed at the leader, “you’re not either.” he was taken back, a look of uncertainty spread across his face. i continued, "but we can strive to be the best version of ourselves. the best absolute version of ourselves possible! we can be more kind, compassionate, honest and so much more. this can lead us to feel more happiness. we would feel happy knowing that we are enough...we would love ourselves for who we are, instead of trying to be something impossible."

the leader started at me, his eyes were growing wide by the second. jimin was awed by my speech, he smiled at me contently. momo's face grew into a whiter shade, she stared at me with blank eyes.

“that’s it...oh, and once again, fuck you," i finished.

there was a moment of silence.

then there was the whistle. the leader pointed at me, making all the guards come racing towards me. my arms were gripped tightly and i was dragged away. my heart hammered against my chest, there no knowing what will happen now.

"dahyun!" i heard jimin yell. he tried saving me but was held down by other men. he struggled against them, yelling my name over and over. i closed my eyes, knowing it was the end for me. they were going to kill me.

the last thing i remember was being thrown into a small dark room.

and then door slammed shut.


	29. knight

**dahyun**

three days.

it's been three days since i've been caged. they've given me little water with no food. i was nearly at the end of my journey. no one can save me now.

i laid on my bed, blankly staring at the wall. my mind was empty, there was nothing to think about. even though i never got to escape, i pray that jimin will.

someone entered the room. i turned my head to see the leader. he wore a grim expression on his face.

_this can't be good._

using my utmost strength, i sat in an upright position. we exchanged glances at each other. he spoke, "i hope you have learnt from your mistakes."

i raised an eyebrow, saying, "what mistakes.. i did nothing wrong."

this obviously triggered the man, he lifted his arm up as if he was going to hit me. i didn't flinch, i had no energy to. the leader's arm stopped in mid-air. my wrecked state could send chills onto anyone's spine. i was a living version of a dead person.

he stepped back, dropping his arm.

"you did plenty wrong..this is the reason why we made the decision to...check you out early," he uttered, his tone unwavering.

_check out early? does he mean.._

"you're going to kill me?" i asked quietly, looking at him with a semi-shocked expression. dead was inevitable, i knew that..but i didn't think it would be so soon.

"it's the only way. after your little speech, everyone..they started to think for themselves. they started wanting to dress and eat for themselves," i could tell he was getting agitated, his voice became louder, "all our hard work gone!"

i stayed quiet, feeling a little better knowing my words helped everyone.

"you've given them something stronger than fear.."

the leader reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun, holding it directly towards me. my eyes stared at the metallic device, knowing it was the end.

"hope," the male finished, his finger on the trigger.

_this was the end of kim dahyun._

in every story, there's always a knight who saves his princess.

but in my case, it was a truck.

the wall on the right collapsed as a huge truck came crashing in. the leader was in full shock, trying to aim the gun at the truck but was too late. i blankly stared at his body, crushed beneath the tires.

_he's dead.._

the sunlight seeped into the room, i turned my head to see a halo figure approaching me. i squinted my eyes, trying to decipher who it was.

"dahyun.." he spoke, now kneeling in front of me. my eyes diluted. my heart started pounding. my knees were shaking.

"jimin?" i whispered, staring at his figure, not believing it was him. he placed his hands on my shoulders, "i'm so glad to see you. he didn't hurt you, did he?" my mouth felt dry, i had no idea whether i was dead or if this was actually happening. i shook my head nevertheless.

he smiled at me, making my heart pound even more.

_okay..this is real._

"come on, we have to go," he said while putting his arm under my legs, lifting me up. the passenger seat to the truck door was open, he clambered me on, making me sit in the middle seat.

"dahyun!" another voice called.

i turned my head to the driver.

"momo?"

"good to see ya, girl! buckle up cuz things are about to get wild!" she yelled while reversing the truck back outside. jimin closed the door and buckled his seatbelt after mine.

"let's go!" he yelled as momo slammed her foot on the acceleration. the truck sped on through votty's campsite, destroying everything in its path.

“h-how..when did..w-why," i stammered, completely oblivious to the situation. momo replied loudly without looking away from the road, "after you got taken away, jimin and i decided to escape. it was tricky but we made it! we even crashed this truck through the lunch room so everyone could escape!" 

my eyes widened. everyone was free? i looked over at jimin, feeling tears form in my eyes. jimin looked at me, smiling while saying, "don't thank me, this is all your fault."

i creased my eyebrows, jimin continued, "you gave us the strength, dahyun. you gave us the power to feel powerful!" 

"you sure did! i feel so fucking powerful!" momo yelled, steering the truck towards the fence. there were several guards standing there, trying to stop us by shooting their guns.

of course, momo didn't stop. she sent the truck crashing through the gate, driving down the road and towards the main road.

“this is crazy,” i muttered, gripping onto my seat.

“head for the motorway, we need to get back to the city so we can tell the police. once we cross the main bridge, we’ll be safe,” jimin yelled towards momo, quickly scanning the map.

“got it!” she yelled.

things escalated pretty quickly when we heard some motorcycles behind us. jimin's eyes grew big in shock. it was the gang members, chasing after us.

“shit, we have company. go faster!” jimin shouted. momo changed gears and sped up. the truck zoomed through the cars, overtaking some while bumping into others.

“we need to lose them, momo!” jimin yelled, seeing the motorcyclists coming closer. the truck was close to the bridge, we just needed to get over.

momo accelerated the truck even faster.

jimin squinted his eyes when he noticed something. on the other side of the bridge, there was a line of gangsters, all aiming their weapons at us.

“shit..we’re not going to make it,” jimin said, gripping onto my arm.

“no...” i breathed out.

“can i do something crazy?” momo asked out of nowhere. jimin and i looked at her with confused eyes. i asked, “what?” a smile crept onto her face.

“this.”

she suddenly jerked the steering wheel to the left, driving the truck into the wrong direction.

“momo, no!” jimin yelled.

everything seemed to go in slow motion. the truck drove over the edge, falling towards the water. i felt jimin's grip on my arm tighten. momo lifted her arms up and screamed gleefully.

i watched as the water grew closer and closer. my mind flashed back to the time i fell into the river, the same eerie feelings came back.

jimin was yelling something at me but i couldn’t hear. my body went limp, my vision started darkening and i stopped breathing.

i lost control.

the truck hit the water.

_and then i woke up._


	30. remember

**dahyun**

_what's happening?_

_i see water again._

_the man drowning is there again._

_i'm back inside the box._

_only this time...i see more._

one click and my eyes flashed open. i couldn't think straight. my heart was pounding out of my chest. my eyes adjusted to the surroundings. the surface beneath me lightly growled. the sound of a heavy motor combined with people shouting was in the background.

_where am i?_

i weakly used one arm to push myself up into a seated position. there were multiple rows of occupied seats in front of me. i looked out the window, the scenery was changing fast, too fast for my eyes to see.

then i realised, we were in a van. the same vehicle we rode a couple of days ago, before we were captured by votty. i've seen these people with tattoos and piercings before.

_wait...why am i back here? where's jimin? momo?_

one of my questions was quickly answered when i saw jimin, looking angrily at some guy with a blunt in his mouth.

"you fucking gave her cannabis? now she's out cold!" i heard jimin yell, anger coursing through his veins. the guy with the blunt casually shrugged and said, "come on, man. she wanted it..and look, she's already awake."

this made jimin snap his head towards me. i was a little surprised when he came and sat next to me, eyeing me down intensively.

“you okay,” jimin asked in a callous tone, totally uninterested. i nodded, though my head was still spinning with confusion. i couldn't help but notice a change in jimin. his eyes..they weren’t warm coats of honey anymore...they were black as pitch, sweeping over my eyes with no pity.

“are you okay?” i asked him quietly. i didn’t like this jimin at all. he was acting like we were in school again, totally disregarding me.

he let out a scoff and replied, “you should ask yourself that. i knew you were crazy but not this crazy. how could you do this?”

i creased my eyebrows, completely blank inside the mind. clearly, he was in a bad mood so i didn’t try get any answers from him. i could ask momo.

looking around, she was nowhere to be seen.

“where's momo?” i asked, looking back at jimin.

a pause.

“who?” jimin asked, looking confused.

“momo...she was in the truck with us before it fell in the river..” i said, staring at him who seemed to be more frazzled than i was. he went on to say, “what're you on about?”

“momo, our friend? where is she?”

“what kind of fucking nonsense are you talking about? who’s momo?” he said, successfully pulling a trigger inside me.

"momo! she's my friend that you worked with to escape votty! i was going to die but you saved me, remember?" i said a little louder.

_why can't he remember?_

"what? man, that drug must have hit you hard," jimin said back.

"huh? what drug?" i said. jimin rolled his eyes and pointed at the guy sitting on the opposite row. he held a big bag of weed, presumably what jimin said i was having.

"this fucker gave you some of that and you blacked out. you must have hallucinated everything," jimin said, looking at me.

i blink, recollecting what he just said.

"y-you mean...everything with votty..momo..they weren't real?" i stuttered, feeling my heart pound against my chest.

jimin nodded, saying, “we stopped by the gas station, paid for your chips and you headed back to the van. when i came back, you were passed out.”

i was so taken back, nothing had me prepared for that.

‘that means everything that happened between jimin and i...him protecting me...our kiss..was all fake..’ i thought, staring at the floor of the van.

“hey, now you know..” jimin said in a gentle tone.

“know what?”

“that you're a lightweight,” jimin said with a smirk. i looked at him with annoyed eyes, not having any energy to reply.

_i guess sweet jimin is gone and normal jimin is back._

“anyway, we're almost there. it should be around ten minutes,” he said, breaking the silence.

i looked at him, “where we going?”

he scoffed amusingly, “seriously? we're going to jeju island to find your dad, remember?”

“oh...right,” i said.

jimin shook his head, looking away while muttering.

"crazy..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that concludes part 1 of this book, woo!


	31. jeju

"all aboard! boat to jeju island! all board!"

it's been a tough couple of days. first, getting kidnapped by gang members. second, being trapped in the controlling as fuck votty, then third, waking up and realising that it was all fake.

yup, i'm totally good.

the van dropped us off. jimin and i waved them goodbye. jimin wasn't the guy i imagined anymore, he was back into the bully who didn't stop tormenting me.

nevertheless, my will to keep going didn't diminish. i am determined to prove to jimin that i didn't kill his parents three years ago.

we boarded onto the boat, sitting down quickly. there was really nothing to talk about between me and jimin. we had nothing in common.

"so.." i said, trying to start a conversation, "when we get to jeju, what are we gunna do?" jimin gave a simple shrug while saying, "not sure, it's your idea so you should know."

"yeah but.." i sighed, looking away from him.

most of the boat ride was quiet, there was nothing said between us. jimin was looking out the window, deep in his thoughts. i always wondered what kind of things would run through his mind.

our silence was broken when he turned to look at me, asking me, "remember when we came to jeju island..when we were younger?"

i blinked at his words, shocked as to how he remembered that. i nodded and said slowly, "and how i was too scared to play in the water..but your dad helped me?" jimin smiled softly, nodding to the beautiful memory.

his smile slowly faded away, looking at me with blank eyes. i knew what he was thinking so i said, "i didn't kill him..just let me prove it." jimin nodded, looking away with a grim expression.

i knew he was tired of not knowing the truth from all these years. i knew he wasn't truly happy ever since the incident.

i'm going to change that.

**three hours later**

the boat came to a stop, we were here. everyone stepped onto the land of jeju island, breathing in the fresh scent of sea salt.

"let's go," i told jimin as we walked down the street. there was a hotel at the end of the road so we would spend the night there, considering how dark it was getting.

dad hunting could wait till morning.

checking into our hotel, we quickly unpacked our things and started planning our trip. jimin sat on the chair while i sat on the bed.

jimin started, "so, we need to find your dad who's apparently staying here. then we need to ask him what really happened that day."

i nodded, "we also need to find our mums. they both disappeared that day too." the male agreed, picking up his pencil and started writing our plans on the back of a hotel magazine.

i closed my eyes, trying to think of anything that could help with our investigation.

"wait..what do you think happened that day?" i asked jimin, realising how i never got his point of view. he looked at me, thinking for a minute.

"not much..i just remember seeing you and my dad. i can't remember much of anything else," he spoke, fiddling with his pencil.

i found that strange.

_why can't he remember anything? surely that incident would be as clear as day for him._

i tried thinking again, there had to be something else.

"uhh..dahyun?" jimin said aloud, bringing my attention back on him. he was looking at the magazine, his expression looked confused.

"yeah?" i asked, watching as he pondered over the magazine.

there was a pause, jimin didn't say anything.

"jimin? what happened?" i asked him, starting to grow anxious by the second.

he picked up the magazine, showing me the back page. there was an image of a lady, fishing with two other kids.

"isn't..isn't that your mum..." he said, looking at me with confused yet shocked eyes.

i looked at the photo. that lady..

that lady is my mum.

oh..my..god.


	32. mum

**dahyun**

"hello? hi, i'm calling to make an order on the 'kim's lifestyle' book?"

i watched jimin as he talked over the phone, positioned lazily on the couch.

last night's findings were revolutionary. finding out my mum was a famous author living in jeju island...it sent chills all over my body. if we managed to find my mum, it would solve everything. we would know the truth behind what happened that day. it could prove my innocence once and for all.

on the magazine extract, jimin was able to find an order form for purchasing her book. that was the only way to contact my mum.

jimin ran his fingers through his morning hair. he yawned multiple times, apologizing for his tiredness over the phone.

"delivery? sorry, we don't live here and the hotel doesn't accept deliveries from other companies. is there any way we could pick up the book ourselves?"

the person on the phone said, "well, ms kim doesn't do pickups, i'm sorry." jimin wasn't going to give up that easily, he said, "would you please make an exception for us? we've travelled a long way to get this book."

the person thought for a moment and said, "well, the only other way would be picking up the book at ms kim's home. would that be okay?"

jimin cracked a smile, knowing he succeeded, "yes, that would be perfect." i watched as he wrote down the address, he then asked, "can i know who this is?"

"oh, this is ms kim's husband, i happen to be her manager as well," he said.

_husband? did she get re-married?_

"well then, i'm looking forward to seeing you both," jimin replied, hanging up the phone.

"24 dokkaebi road, let's go." 

**half an hour later**

we walked along the quiet road, the wind rustled the leaves on the trees. jimin was also quiet, walking with his hands in his pockets.

my mind started thinking back. back to the time, we were in votty. it was a painful memory but i couldn't stop myself from thinking about the moments i shared with jimin.

_'i was in a whole new world. when his lips latched onto mine, i forgot everything in that moment.'_

my heart rate accelerated. even just thinking about that kiss was enough to make my cheeks red. jimin interrupted my train of thoughts. he said, "this road is known as being the mystery road." i looked at him with a surprised expression.

"really? why?" i asked.

he said nothing except hold out his water bottle, placing it on the ground. to my shock, the bottle started moving on its own, up the slightly uphill path.

it was defying gravity. i awed at its movements. jimin chuckled and said, "it's an illusion. creepy but...cool." i nodded, looking at him for a moment as he walked beside me.

_the kiss...i will never forget that kiss._

soon, we were standing outside the door of my mother's house. there were butterflies in my stomach and i felt my knees going weak. jimin took a deep breath and reached out, ringing the bell. i shivered, feeling myself coming closer and closer to the truth.

the door handle turned. the door swung open. my eyes diluted at the figure standing in front of me. it was my mum...

the air was quiet. she looked at me and i looked at her. i could tell by the way her face paled..she recognised me.

jimin stepped in and offered his hand out, saying, "pleasure to meet you, ms kim. we're here because we're a fan of your book." my mother looked at him, her skin paling into another lighter shade of white.

she forcefully smiled and shook jimin's hand, saying quietly, "thank you for reading my book, i...i'll just get your copy and you can be on your way."

jimin knew she was pretending to not recognise them, he also knew she was trying to get away as quick as possible.

he quickly asked her, "i don't mean trouble but would you happen to have some water? we've travelled a long way from seoul to be here."

i caught a flicker of hesitation in her eyes. she nodded and ushered us in. jimin smiled, saying, "you're very kind, thank you."

i followed jimin inside, feeling my heart beat out of my chest. i haven't seen my mum since the incident, which was three years ago. she hasn't changed a bit. i knew she would help us with our case, she has to.

we made ourselves comfortable in her living room as she fetched us our water. i looked at jimin and whispered, "what's the plan? we can't just straight up ask her where my dad is." jimin was about to reply but when he saw my mum returning, he whispered, "just trust me."

my mum handed us a glass of water. she sat down in front of us. i took a sip of my water, wondering how jimin was going to confront her. he would have to make small talk with her first, then would slowly start to expose her.

but, no. that wasn't jimin's plan at all. not even close.

"did dahyun kill my dad?" he asked bluntly, not wasting any time.

i choked on my water, spilling its contents everywhere.

ms kim's eyes widened.


	33. daughter

**dahyun**

_"did dahyun kill my dad?" he asked bluntly, not wasting any time._

_i choked on my water, spilling its contents everywhere._

_ms kim's eyes widened._

jimin's words changed everything.

after regaining myself from the water accident, i distinctly looked at jimin, wondering what the hell he was doing.

the tension in the air was so thick, you could cut it with a knife. jimin held his gaze on my mother, not wavering at all.

i turned to look at her as well. she just sat there, not moving. her face was now a lighter shade of white, starting to look ill.

_no, this wasn't the plan. i don't want to scare her._

"jimin," i started but was interrupted by my mom.

"i don't know.," she said in a quiet tone. i looked at her with wide eyes, she finally spoke. jimin furrowed his eyebrows, saying, "what do you mean you don't know. you were fucking there. you should know better than anyone."

"jimin," i said again but she spoke, saying, "i really don't. your mother and i weren't even at the port when it happened."

there was no response from the male. he stared at her, not knowing if she was lying or telling the truth.

"what happened to my mother," he asked, starting to feel anxious. ms kim looked at him with sympathy and said, "i haven't seen her since that day...i do know she's alive but that's about it. i can't help you."

jimin closed his eyes, clenching his fists in anger. he shuddered a breath, speaking slowly, "do you have any idea what it's like to lose both your parents? it feels...it took me a long time to accept it. but now i'm here...ready...trying to solve this mystery...and you won't even help me."

ms kim looked at him, not knowing what to say.

i tried to step in, saying, "what did you see happen that day?" ms kim turned to me, thinking to herself. after a few minutes, she said, "all i remember seeing on the news was jimin's father when he drowned and was found dead inside a container that fell into the ocean."

my mind clicked. container? i thought back to my visions.

a box.

_we were trapped inside a box under water. water soon started filling inside, making me see the near end of my life._

my eyes widened. that box i was trapped in was a container! i was trapped inside with jimin's dad. he saved me but drowned in the process. his body was found dead later by the police.

i returned back into my present state. looking at my mom, i asked, "you said his body was found in the container..was there anything else in the container? like a person?"

she thought for a moment but shook her head, saying, "i only remember the police finding one body. why?"

confused ran across my face, i thought to myself, 'but i was in the container with him..it doesn't make sense.' i looked at ms kim and shook my head, "just wondering."

ms kim said, "there was also a missing file report for two people; dahyun's dad and your mum." jimin nodded, looking down at his hands.

"was that why you moved away...because your husband was missing and i was sent to juvenile detention," i asked quietly. ms kim cleared her throat and said, "that man is not my husband anymore. i have a new family...and i'm finally living in peace."

i sighed, remembering how violent my father would get towards my poor mother.

jimin spoke after a long time, saying, "our old friend ray told us that both fathers were fighting on the same day of the incident, got anything to say about that?"

she thought for another moment, she said, "i do remember dahyun's dad being upset because of something your father did. but again, i don't know anything."

just then, a man walked inside the living room. he smiled widely and said, "you must be jimin? the man who wanted this? nice to meet you, i'm jaehoon." he held the book in his hands. jimin looked at him, realising he was the new husband.

i looked up at him, growing quiet.

jaehoon seemed a little confused over our quiet state but continued to smile. jimin snapped out of his daze and smiled. he got up and took the book, saying, "i appreciate it, thanks."

it went quiet again.

jimin said, "well, i think it's about time we left." he looked at me and raised his eyebrows. i nodded while standing up, "yeah, we should go."

jaehoon nodded and said, "no problem, it was nice meeting you. i'll show you out." ms kim stood up abruptly and said, "darling, it's okay. i'll show them out." jaehoon nodded, waving goodbye.

we walked back to the entrance, stepping out of the house. jimin didn't say anything to ms kim and started walking ahead. i looked my mum, wanting to say something but couldn't. she stood by the door, avoiding my eyes.

before i could walk away, she whispered, "even chapters." i stopped, looking at her again.

"huh?"

she looked at me, repeating, "even chapters." before i could ask, she turned and closed the door.

"dahyun, let's go!" jimin yelled from the main gate. i slowly turned, walking back to him. the two words bouncing up and down my mind.

'even chapters?'


	34. hotel

**dahyun**

we were back at the hotel. jimin was sprawled across the bed, flipping through the pages of the 'kim's lifestyle' book. 

i didn't tell him about what my mum said about the 'even chapters.' i felt it being a secret between us, like jimin wasn't supposed to know.

"wow, this is so interesting," jimin said in a sarcastic tone, tossing the book away. he laid on his back, staring at the ceiling. he sighed in frustration.

"we made no progress...even after seeing your mum," he said. i was seated on the coach, watching him. i nodded in response, looking at the book on the ground.

"i don't know how much longer i can do this. this shit is too hard," he sighed, "never mind, i'm going to sleep," he said, turning onto his side.

"okay," i replied, continuing to watch the book. making sure he wasn't looking, i used quick hands to pick up the book. i held onto it with uncertainty. for some reason, i felt really anxious. slowly, i turned the cover, reading the index page. the list of chapters were present, going from one to ten.

'even chapters, okay,' i thought to myself. that would have to be chapter two, four, six, eight and ten. i turned the pages over to chapter two.

"the beginning of school life," i quietly read with a confused look in my eyes. i continued reading the words on the page.

it read, "school is the very beginning stage to your life. you will meet new people" _blah blah blah_ "it was the first time i made friends. my first name, momo was a real sweetheart."

i blinked. i reread the sentence. 'momo?' i thought.

the same momo i met in the imaginary world of votty? that momo? or was it just a coincidence? i shook my head.

no, it can't be a coincidence. not many people has that name. but...why? and what could it mean?

a thought ran through my mind. i gasped, putting a hand over my mouth.

_did i see the future? was everything i saw in votty something that would happen in the future?_

i decided to keep reading. the book further read, "momo was a real sweetheart. she helped me when i was down, she was kind when i was alone. she was crazy for sure...but kind."

'sounds like the same momo,' i thought.

i continued reading, it said, "we would have so much fun at school. our teachers would hate us so much because we were always so loud and crazy. the school was a private school, really stuck to the rules. i never liked that school. the school of voltsberg is no one's place."

'voltsberg? sounds a lot like votty.'

getting onto my feet, i snatched my phone and did a quick google search on 'voltsberg.' it was only fifteen minutes away by foot.

my adrenaline started kicking in. with quick hands, i went back to the book and continued reading.

"it was a place i always hated. it's been over thirty years since i attended that school, a lot has changed but the school still remains a living hell. recently, i heard that my friend momo became a teacher there! a person like her would surely enlighten the atmosphere. she goes by ms momo and she's already a student favorite. take my word for it, if you need help with anything...she's there."

_bingo._

i cracked a smile, now having collected all the information i needed. after reading the last few sentences, i closed the book shut.

'okay. i need to go to this school and find ms momo,' i thought. quickly moving around the small hotel room, i grabbed my bag, a water bottle, the book and my phone. i quietly put my shoes on, grabbing onto the door handle of the front door.

somewhere deep in my gut, i could tell i was in for an epic adventure. it was going to be one big game of hide and seek. except..i would win the game. i would find who killed jimin's parents that day.

before i turned the door handle, the soft snores from jimin sleeping on the bed stopped me. i turned to look at him. he was sound asleep on the bed.

_should i wake him up? should i take him with me?_

i already knew my mum didn't want jimin to know, otherwise she would have told him about the even chapters, but she didn't. this was up to me.

and besides, there was only one seeker in a game of hide and seek.

that was me.

i twisted the door handle and walked out.


	35. school

**jimin**

the sun rose early the next morning. my eyes opened ever so slowly, i resisted myself from waking up. for some strange reason, my instincts were telling me that today was going to be a shit day.

from the way my bones cracked even with the slightest movements. how parched my throat felt, so dry that it felt like i haven't drunk water in centuries. my eyes were straining from the growing light of the sun rising.

it was already one hella of a shit day.

lazily, i swung my arm behind me. to my surprise, i couldn't feel anyone lying beside. someone specifically kim dahyun. i lifted my head, looking over at the empty space on the bed.

"dahyun?" i voiced in my low morning voice. my eyes scanned the bed, the coach near the bed and the ground. there was no sight of her.

"where did she go?" i asked, sitting upright, looking around once again. there was no one else here.

my phone was beside me, i picked it up and quickly dialled dahyun's number. it went directly to the answering machine, no answer.

"fucking hell," i cursed, tossing the device away. i started growing annoyed, having no idea what happened to her.

'maybe she's in the bathroom?' i suggest to myself. with much effort, i got onto my feet and paced towards the bathroom. bringing my hand up, i knocked a few times and waited patiently.

no response. growing more irritated, i knocked again, this time saying, "dahyun? are you in there?" still nothing.

_what the f-_ _i mentally cursed, moving away from the bathroom. did she leave? without me? i scanned the hotel room, immediately noticing the lack of her stuff. everything of hers was gone, like she packed up her stuff and left. several thoughts started crowding my mind; 'did i upset her? nah. maybe she was kidnapped? surely not. fuck, i don't know.'_

i sighed in frustration, rubbing my sleep-deprived eyes. thinking back to last night, i did notice something weird with her. it was like she was...nervous? confused? had something to say but couldn't? that was after we visited her mum.

an idea clicked in my head. _the book._

quickly, i scanned the room for the book. but my luck wasn't there, the book was nowhere to be found. 'she took it with her,' i thought, knowing i was right.

exhausted, i sat on the edge of the bed, resting my elbows on my knees. i was consumed with confusion, completely oblivious to dahyun's intentions.

"i thought we were a team," i muttered pathetically, eyeing the dirty carpet with blank eyes.

**_dahyun_ **

'voltsberg school,' read the sign that was bolted on the fence. quiet murmurs of the children were heard as they walked through the gates to the school. i stood across the street, tugging my jacket closer to my shivering body.

"okay...this is it," i said while taking my first steps to the school. i knew that leaving jimin behind was a dick move but i had to do this alone. after entering the school gates, i made my way to the office. i asked the reception lady, "i'm was wondering whether i could see ms momo? it's kinda urgent." the lady looked up from her computer screen, looking at me with a small smile.

"yes madam, let me just check for you." after a few clicks on her keyboard, she told me, "yes, she's at room 12. but please first fill out a visitor form."

after i signed a few papers, i made my way to room 12. for some obscure reason, this place reminded me so much of votty. it was mostly white from its walls, the student's uniforms and even the school pet, the cat had snow-white fur. it wasn't soon until i felt goosebumps rising on my skin, it was starting to get really suffocating in here.

room 12, there it was. i slowly walked in, seeing a female figure sit behind the teacher's desk.

"excuse me, are you ms momo?" i quietly asked, approaching her desk. she looked at me. 'thank goodness she doesn't look like momo,' i thought, observing her face. ms momo had a sudden change in expression, her previous calm state turned into a surprised, nearly shocked expression.

"dahyun?" she cooed, standing from her seat. i was surprised by the sudden recognition.

"you know me?"

"of course, your mum used to talk about you heaps!" she beamed, putting her hands on my shoulders. her smile somewhat made me feel more safe. it made me feel warm inside.

"where have you been?! i was waiting so long to meet you!" she said loudly, shaking me. i blinked, not knowing what to say. i didn't even know she existed before yesterday. i stuttered out, "o-oh, um. i don't know what to say."

"you don't have to say anything! i'm just so happy to see you!"

i then smiled in response, nodding my head. then i remembered why i was here. 'ask her about that day,' my conscious self said.

"i uh...came here to ask you something," i asked in which she enthusiastically nodded.'

"of course! what is it?"

"i'm here to talk about that day...you know, when park jimin's parents were killed."

after finishing my sentence, i instantly regretted it because her smile disappeared. she let go of my shoulders and stepped away from me.

"ms momo? please, I'm sorry if i made you upset but i really need to know," i said, looking at her who turned her back away from me. she looked at the ground, keeping her hands close to her chest. after a long pause, ms momo finally turned back around, looking at me with another smile.

"that day...was definitely very interesting," she started, continuing to say, "so many things happened that is still very confusing to me." she sighed, asking, "where do i begin?"

"first answer me this, did i really kill his parents like everyone thinks?" i asked with big eyes, not wanting to wait anymore. this was the moment of truth.

she hesitated. her eyes avoided mine. i felt my heartbeat accelerating when i heard a quiet 'no' from her.

_i knew it... i knew i was innocent._

but before i could celebrate with joy, i stopped when ms momo was looking displeased. i asked her quietly, "then who did?"

"he...did," she couldn't finish her sentence, tears were beginning to sprout in her eyes. she looked like she was going to explode any second.

"he? who did?" i asked again, feeling my heartbeat rapidly.

and finally, she said it.

"your father...he killed jimin's parents."


	36. danger

**dahyun**

"your father...he killed jimin's parents."

as soon as those words escaped her lips, my body became still. my eyes never left hers. something powerful snapped within me. i had a sudden urge to run and hide away from the truth, but i didn’t, my feet stayed rooted to the ground.

“dahyun?” she slowly said to me, noticing my lack of response. i tried saying something but nothing came out. my mouth slightly gaped open as i registered her words again.

‘my dad? he…he was the killer?’ some part of me was overjoyed that i was innocent, but the fact that my father was the culprit didn’t make the situation better. somehow, it made it worse.

“dahyun,” ms momo repeated more sternly. i snapped out of my thoughts.

“i-i don’t know what to say, i…” my eyes looked away.

“i’m sorry, dahyun. i know that was a lot to take in. just know that i’m here to help, if you want to know more about that day, please do ask,” the older female spoke, looking at me with eyes full of sympathy. i started thinking to myself. now i know it was my dad, the only thing now was to prove that to jimin. i needed to get as much information as i could from ms momo. only then can i find my dad and prove once and for all that i was innocent.

“okay…uh, i have so many questions,” i said, trying to recollect my scattered thoughts. the first question that popped up was, “i heard that jimin’s dad was found dead in a container, how did that happen? and how was my dad involved?”

ms momo thought for a little bit, she answered, “well, it’s true that jimin’s dad was found in that container. apparently, both dad was fighting that day.”

‘that’s what roy said,’ i remembered the sudden memory. i nodded, urging her to continue.

“i heard they were fighting about something. it got pretty serious because your dad started threatening jimin’s father. that’s why he made a run for it. i don’t know what happened after that but some people think that your father pushed jimin’s dad into car container, explaining why his body was found days later and why your father fled the city.”

‘oh,’ i thought while nodding in response. i pursed my lips into a tight line. another question came up, “why did my mum leave clues in her book to meet you? why didn’t she tell me this herself?”

“well, your mum was in danger. if she told you what happened with your father, he would find her and kill her.”

i was taken back. “w-what? my dad…threatened her too?” ms sadly nodded, “your father has quite a temper, if anyone crossed him, he would…” she sighed, eyebrows furrowing at the thought. she continued, “so your mother, in order to protect herself, she told me everything so that i could pass it on to you. that’s why she kept clues in her book, hoping that one day you would be able to see it.”

that part made sense. i nodded, keeping my eyes trained to the ground. that must be the reason why my mum looked a bit freaked out the day we met her. my dad must have frightened her to the core. i had memories of my father using violence against my mum, they were vague memories but…i knew his cruel temper was real. my eyes drifted back up to ms momo.

“was that why she ran away?”

“yes…your mum, she was in a real bind. she had to run from your father, he was threatening to kill her,” she replied, an evident frown on her face. even though i sympathized towards my mother’s situation, i didn’t miss the way my heart expressed a hint of betrayal.

“but…why didn’t she take me with her? i was sent to juvenile prison because everyone thought i was the killer,” i said back.

“that’s the thing, she was supposed to take you with her. but when you were arrested, she didn’t have the courage to fight for you. she’s a weak person, dahyun. please do understand.” i quickly brushed it off, saying, “it doesn’t matter now. another thing, when jimin accused me of being the killer, why did everyone believe him?”

“everyone believed jimin because…well the poor kid just lost his parents, everyone felt sorry for him. he was also the only witness. he just kept saying that you killed his parents, that he saw you with his own eyes.”

i sighed, still not understanding why jimin was accusing me. ms momo spoke after a moment of silence, saying, “i’m sorry, dahyun but i need to go to a teacher’s meeting. we can continue some other time, okay? come, i’ll show you outside.” in response, i nodded with a slight smile. i caught the way her hands were trembling, her whole persona just screamed anxiety.

_of course she would be stressed, she’s risking her life telling me all of this._

we walked side by side down the quiet hallway. all the students were inside their classes, writing down notes aimlessly into their notebooks. i peered over at ms momo, who continued looking stressed, and asked her, “ms, do you know anything about visions?”

she raised an eyebrow, “visions? what do you mean?”

“well, this might sound crazy but i keep having these weird dreamlike visions. most of them are vague and unclear but for some reason, i feel as if those visions are showing the future.”

ms momo looked baffled at this point.

i continued, “i know it’s weird but hear me out. for example, i saw someone very similar to you in a recent vision. she was also called momo and helped me out when i was down.”

“wow, i’m shocked,” she spoke. “did you see anything else?”

i nodded, replying quickly, “yeah, i even saw some visions from the past, more specifically, what happened that day of jimin’s parent’s death. i saw myself being trapped inside the same container as jimin’s dad. i saw him drown after the tank was filled up with water, but that was after he saved me. except, what confuses me was that the police only discovered his body, no one elses. i don’t know why but i keep seeing myself inside the container with him…but in reality, i wasn’t even there.”

she didn’t response by being too distracted with her own thoughts. her silence made me feel unsettled, so i answered for her, “i don’t think it’s anything to worry about. i’ve always had these weird vision things.”

the female looked at me, nodding in response. we continued walking in silence. the outside fresh air filled my lungs as we stepped out. ms momo stopped in front of me when we reached the exit. we were alone on one end of the school, she smiled slightly and said, “i hope i was some help to you.”

“of course, thank you so much. i’ll come back after sorting out some matters,” i replied. before i turned away, i remembered something, “one more thing,” i paused, taking a deep breath before continuing, “i want to see my dad…do you know where i can find him?”

“i’m sorry, dahyun. that’s the only question i can’t answer because i simply don’t know. there is one thing though, your father was believed to be part of an organization. if you can somehow find a link with that, or maybe even find some people involved in the same group, you can definitely find your dad,” she answered. i nodded, replying, “i’ll keep that in mind. thank you so much. i’ll be going now.” as i was about to turn away, she spoke.

“oh dahyun, one more thing. don’t tell jimin about this…he’s already heartbroken about his parents and imagine how he’ll feel if he knew the truth. please, tell jimin to go back home. it’s best if you do this on your own.”

i was about to reply when there was a sudden movement in the bushes behind me. ms momo’s body went still, her eyes turned blank. i turned around quickly, seeing a masked man running away from us.

“who the hell was that?” i asked, looking back at ms. her glassy eyes started to leak droplets of tears, her mouth was slightly open in shock, her body was frozen.

“ms?” i asked, looking at her state worriedly. it was only until my eyes traveled down, a small knife was lodged in her chest. my heart dropped, watching as blood started flowing out of her wound.

_he threw a knife at her…_

ms momo’s knees gave in, she dropped suddenly to the ground. i quickly kneeled beside her, feeling my own tears starting to cascade down my round cheeks.

_oh my god, oh my god, oh my god…she’s dead._

“momo!” i cried, holding onto her fragile body. my wails gained the attention of a few teachers and students around the school. they all started crowding the area, all in deep shock with what had happened. the ambulance was called, which arrived within minutes.

i watched as she was taken away, feeling myself grow weaker by the second.

‘it’s all my fault. she knew she was risking her life by knowing the secr-’ something clicked in my head. ms momo’s words rang throughout my head.

_“well, your mum was in danger. if she told you what happened with your father, he would find her and kill her.”_

_“your father was believed to be part of an organization. if you can somehow find a link with that, or maybe even find some people involved in the same group, you can definitely find your dad.”_

‘find her and kill her.’ ‘organization.’ ‘find…and kill.’

the puzzle pieces were slowly joining together. i gasped at my sudden realization.

‘my dad was the leader of a dangerous gang.’


	37. dolls

**dahyun**

it was late at night, i was walking alone on the dimly lit streets. my hands tucked into my pockets as a cold breeze rushed past me. usually, i would be hesitant walking down a street alone, especially when i was mugged a month ago. i remembered feeling so scared, only for jimin to be my knight in shiny armour. now, one month later, i was walking without fear. things were different now, i'm a changed person. even though i was mentally crushed, i was physically radiating confidence.

there was a bus stop not too far away. a single street light stood over a worn out looking bench. there was no one else there except for an elderly man, who smoked a cigarette while reading the newspaper. i made my way over there, placing my bag next to me, making sure to keep some distance between me and the man.

finally letting my tired feet rest, i let out a sigh of exhaustion. today had been a shit day. in the morning, i witnessed ms momo getting killed. then i was sent into a downward spiral of self-hatred. i kept thinking how it was my fault, how her death was my fault. i was always in the wrong place, in the wrong time. i’ve seen too many people die in front of my eyes, jimin’s dad, ms momo and…taehyung.

i spend time alone in the playground after that. i did nothing but cry and wail for a few hours. after the sun was put to bed, the sky turned dark. i somehow managed to pull myself together. i had to, for ms momo's sake. i would never forget her kindness, the huge help she had been.

unzipping my bag, i pulled out the ‘kim’s lifestyle’ book. i went straight to the index, reading the contents. chapter two, talking to ms momo, was now complete. it was chapter four’s turn. flipping over to the said chapter page, i started reading.

“even though school was stressful, i always had something at home that i would always look forward to. that was my dollhouse. i played with it all the time, it was my favourite.”

as i read the chapter, i found myself getting confused. dollhouse? i furrowed my eyebrows as i continued reading. it read, “i had two barbie dolls and two ken dolls. they were living together in one big happy family. they made me so happy, i would even run back home after school, just so i could play with them. but one day when i came home, there were two dolls missing. a barbie and a ken doll, just vanished into thin air. i was upset, of course, because now the family was separated. soon after losing them, i found that someone vandalised my remaining ken doll. they made him look different by changing his usual blue jacket to a black one. the word 'volts' written on the back.

i stopped reading momentarily. ‘volts? another name that’s close to votty, that’s vital. but wait, why did she keep talking about her dolls? maybe they symbolized something to her? or someone?’

now i was intrigued by my thoughts, i continued reading, “it sucked because i didn’t like the new ken doll, it wasn’t what i fell in love with. it wasn't soon until i came home one day to find that ken doll missing too. now three of my dolls were gone. only one barbie doll was left, all by herself. that was the reason why i decided to send the last barbie doll away to another child. i was happy because the doll could be happy somewhere with new people."

i was taken back. ‘why does this story seem so familiar? there were four dolls, two went unexpectedly missing one day. one ken doll changed itself entirely, only to leave later on. the last barbie doll was then taken away to another family.’

maybe…just maybe, these dolls represent _my parents and jimin’s parents._

my eyes widened when i figured it out, i couldn’t stop myself when i yelled, “holy shit!!” realizing a second later, i covered my mouth. the old man looked at me with raised eyebrows. embarrassed, i quickly turned away, hiding my face in the book.

‘oh my god, i just figured it out. it makes sense! two ken dolls and two barbie which equals to my parents and jimin’s parents! that’s why one ken and barbie doll went missing, which symbolizes when jimin’s parents died that day. the remaining ken and barbie were my parents. my mom was talking about herself when she said, ‘decided to send the barbie doll away, somewhere where she can be happy with a new family.’

_holy shit, this is insane._

then i realized one more thing, in the chapter, my mother mentioned how the ken doll changed from wearing a blue jacket to a black jacket. not only that, the jacket said ‘volts.’ could that be the name of my father's gang? that had to be the only explanation.

there was one last paragraph left. i started reading, ‘that’s the end of this chapter. i just wanted to say how much i miss these dolls, they meant so much to me. you might be wondering what happened to the two dolls that first went missing? well, i found out the ken doll was tossed into a recycling box.’ _box? j_ _imin’s dad found dead in a container!!_ ‘and for the barbie doll, i never knew what happened to her. _jimin’s mum went missing…there was no trace of her._ but i know what you might be thinking, why am i telling you about my old play dolls? well, because my dollhouse, for me, was a big fat representation of life. it shows me that _you_ , yes you, holding this book right now, you are the player, the child, the craftsmen…you take full control of what happens to your dolls. if you choose to make them eat peacefully in the kitchen, they will do that. if you chose to cut their heads off and throw it away...they will do it. that’s because you are in control of your life. you are the god.”

an involuntary chill ran up my spine after finishing the last sentence. the last part of the chapter didn't make sense but i brushed it off, thinking how strange my mother was. she wrote a whole chapter about her dolls and yet managed to relate it back to the incident.

i put the book down, regaining my composure. for the first time in a long time, i felt accomplished. i was one more step closer to finding my dad. now i knew the name of his gang, ‘volts’, all i needed now was to find their whereabouts.

but how? i would need to hack into a whole database to find some good information. but, i don’t know how to do that, computers weren't my thing. i pursed my lips, trying hard to think. maybe icould get someone else to help me? someone who knew a lot about computers. but who? the wires in my brain started fusing together, creating a spark when an idea formed.

this guy from school… that guy, what’s his name again? he used to play soccer in the same team with taehyung. he was a jock but secretly was a computer geek.

damn it, what’s his name?

my mind suddenly flashed back to some bitter memories at school. when jimin choked me, thinking i threatened his girlfriend, that guy was there watching. when he held a huge party where i went with taehyung, only for it to be the last time i saw taehyung. he was always in the background.

and finally, i got it.

another chill travelled up my spine. i guess it’s time to meet my old friend…kai.


	38. hack

**dahyun**   
  
  


"all aboard! boat to the mainland! all board!"

i clambered onto the boat, giving my ticket to the nice man. he looked at me with little confusion and asked, "where's the boy with the blonde hair?"

"jimin? oh..um, he decided to stay longer. doesn't wanna get back to seoul just yet," i replied almost too casually. but the man seemed to buy it as he replied with a light-hearted nod.

i made my way to my designated seat. it felt different being alone this time. i liked it though, there were no more insults or pushing from jimin. it was nice except, there were times when i missed jimin. i mean sure, he was an asshole. but sometimes i needed a friend by my side.

and yes, i knew it was my fault we separated but i only did because ms momo and my mother told me to. and they're right, jimin has too much on his table right now.

the boat slowly drifted away from the docks. i watched from the murky window as the island of jeju grew smaller and smaller.  
  


**five hours later**

i glanced down at my watch, it was currently 1:36 pm. it was the perfect time to hunt down kai since it was lunch and everyone was sitting in the cafeteria.

keeping my head low, i made my way through the school hallways. i didn't miss the way students were staring at me with their usual glares. i heard whispers coming from them.

_'oh my god, she's back.'_

_'she's back after killing more victims.'_

_'ew, she stinks like fish.'_

i frowned, trying to avoid their stares. it's been too long since i've been back here. my life's been revolving around solving the mystery of jimin's parents. i haven't even had a chance to think about my life here.

but who knows? maybe after i solve this case, i could come back to school and live a normal life.

just maybe...

as i made my way through, an elderly woman walked out from her office. she caught my gaze and her eyes lit up. she smiled widely and approached me.

"dahyun! it's been a while, how have you been?" ms jung, the counsellor asked me. she was the teacher i had to visit every day for my 'anger problems.' i smiled slightly, knowing i wasn't always nice to her.

"ms jung...i've been okay."

"have you been controlling your anger?" she asked with a good heart but it still managed to annoy me inside. she raised her eyebrows as she looked at me.

"fine.." i replied, trying to leave, "i uh, i'm actually in a hurry so if you will excuse me." i turned and continued my way down the hallway. i knew she was just trying to help, but there's no point. i don't have anger issues anyway.

she looked at my diminishing figure with a grim expression. she had a paper in her hands, she quickly jotted down in pen, 'patient still remains to have problems. consult with professionals.'

i finally saw the entrance to the lunch hall. quickly, i scurried my way through the students and towards the table located on the north side.

then i saw it. the big table with the giggling cheerleaders and the jocks wearing their varsity jackets. my eyes scanned the table until they landed on a male sitting near the edge. he smiled and wrapped his arms around the girl that sat on his lap. she giggled and played with his hair, pressing a wet kiss on his forehead.

"kai, you're so cute," she told him, pressing another kiss. he responded with a smile as he leant in and kissed her lips.

i made my way over to him. i cleared my throat, staring at the couple with discomfort. no response, they kept exchanging their saliva with no care.

i cleared my throat again, still no response.

"kai!" i yelled, successfully gaining not only kai's attention but the whole table's. everyone's eyes were on me. i gulped, realising how loud i was. i only needed kai's attention.

said male looked at me. he smiled and said, "dahyun? god, i thought you were in jail? nice to see you!" i stopped the urge to roll my eyes. he continued, "what brings you here? as you can see, i'm a little busy."

"i need a favour."

"favour? why would i help the girl who killed taehyung and jimin?"

i furrowed my eyebrows, replying, "what? jimin's not dead. he's in jeju island."

"jeju? is that where he's run off too? damn, he must've grown a pussy and ran away from you," kai remarked, causing his friends to snicker back.

i started clenching my fists by my sides. "kai, seriously. i need your help. stop fucking pissing around and help me." i earned an 'oooo' from his jock friends, trying to sound intimidated by me. 

kai scoffed and fought back by saying, "pissing around? i'm not some psycho who goes around killing people. count me out. find someone else to bother, i'm busy." he turned back around to the girl, leaning in and captured her lips.

i frowned at his response. this was going to be harder than i thought. no one else knew computers better than kai. for him, hacking into a database was elementary level.

"kai, i'm not going to ask again," i said with a straight face.

but i immediately regretted saying that after kai turned to look at me with a glare. he pushed the girl aside and rose onto his feet.

"oh no! i'm so sad, dahyun," he said sarcastically, stepping closer to me, causing me to step back. i noticed how his friends joined in. soon, i was surrounded.

my hairs on skin started rising as i watched kai reach for a water bottle. he unscrewed the cap of the bottle and lifted it over my head.

_no, not again._

i watched as kai looked down at me with a scary smirk. he said, "everyone knows how you're scared of water. proves you right, you psycho bitch."

i squeezed my eyes shut, bending my head down. i didn't notice how my body was trembling.

"kai! stop, you're scaring her!"

i reopened my eyes, staring at the owner of the voice. it was the girl that was sitting on kai's lap before. she wore an unimpressed look on her face. kai stopped pouring the water and looked at her, everyone turned to look at her.

she got up and dusted her mini skirt. she looked at me with a small smile.

"she deserves it, rose. you saw what she did to taehyung," kai responded.

rose replied simply by shaking her head. she said, "that's the thing, baby. we never saw her do it. same goes for jimin's parents, we weren't actually there that day. how can we know for sure if she did it? what if it was all an accident?"

the entire hall went quiet.

a glimmer of hope gently fluttered in my heart.

_yes, it was an accident...believe me._

_please, believe me._


	39. rose

**dahyun**

"did anyone actually see dahyun push taehyung in front of that truck? was anyone there when dahyun supposedly killed jimin's parents? come on guys, stop tormenting her already. she's had enough."

i listened as those precious words escaped rose's lips. she had the attention of everyone in the school. kai looked at her with widened eyes, he never knew his girlfriend was capable of saying such things. my body was completely still, continuing to stare at her with awe.

this was the first time in three years someone defended me. a whole new feeling of relief rushed through me.

"kai, let her go," rose told her boyfriend who was holding onto my wrist tightly. he looked at her with total confusion, "what?"

"i said...let her go, kai," she commanded in an authoritative tone, eyeing him to the core. he hesitated but his grasp on my wrist sprung loose. a satisfied smile landed on her face, she said sweetly, "now i think you should help dahyun with whatever she needed."

"what? no fucking way, i'm outta here," kai replied in a snarky tone, turning back to his friends on the table.

rose cleared her throat, looking at him with raised eyebrows. "kai, you've known dahyun since you were in kindergarten. i'm sure she's never asked for any help before."

he stopped and looked over at her with a pissed expression. he backfired by saying, "you being serious right now?"

"deadly serious, kai. you need to repay her for scaring her like that," she spoke, her voice not wavering. kai let out a groan of frustration. "i already said no, rose! i'm not doing shit. now come back here so i can kiss you."

obviously, rose's feet stayed firmly planted on the ground. she frowned at him and placed her hands on her waist. "help dahyun otherwise you get no kisses," she remarked, tapping her foot on the ground.

i looked between the two, not knowing if i should interject. when i looked at rose, it was a little strange because she seemed so familiar, like we've met before in a different situation.

after a couple of minutes, kai finally gave in. he sighed and placed a hand on his head. i was a little taken back when his eyes landed on me. he asked in a dull tone, "how can i help?"

in the next few minutes, kai was typing code into a school computer. rose and i stood behind him, watching the screen with curious eyes.

"so you just wanna find your dad?" kai asked. i nodded quickly.

"simple enough. i just need to hack into the government's database where they store all the names of the citizens of korea. what's your dad's name?"

"kim junghyun," i replied, watching as he typed the said name into the keyboard. when he clicked the enter key, a whole list of names appeared. there was more than a thousand kim junghyun's listed. i mentally groaned at the sight.

this was going to be harder than i thought.

rose bit her lip, looking through the list. she asked kai, "how do we find the right one?" he thought for a moment and came up with a solution.

he turned the chair around and looked at us both, he said, "okay so, you two look down the list. i've inserted some code so every man who's older than forty will have a star by their names. you go down the list and highlight all of them."

rose nodded as kai continued, "then the list is smaller so i can add another code that will make the list smaller and smaller until we find our man." i smiled, feeling excitement grow inside me.

we made ourselves comfortable in front of the screen and started scanning the list. kai did the same on another computer, highlighting every name that had a star next to it.

as we were working, i glanced over at rose who seemed focused on the screen. every time a name had a star, she would enthusiastically smile and click on it dramatically.

that got me thinking, which led me to say, "hey rose? can i ask you something?"

"hm?" she looked up from the screen.

"why...why are you so eager to help me? i mean, i'm grateful and all but...why?" i looked at her. she looked away and chewed her lip a little.

"well...i have to repay you for what jimin did."

confusion ran across my face, i asked, "what? what did jimin do?" asked, looking at her with more confusion.

"girl, can't you remember? that day he choked you because he thought you threatened me. but he was just being stupid because i was talking about a completely different dahyun. remember that?" she asked, watching me.

a frown etched onto my face as the memories from that day suddenly flashed across my eyes. my hand subconsciously reached up and touched my neck gently. it seemed so long ago yet...i remembered every detail.

that's why rose seemed familiar. she was dating jimin back then, she was the reason why he attacked me. but then again, i wouldn't have met taehyung if that didn't happen.

"i-it's okay...it's in the past," i told her, who had guilt all over her face. she just sighed and said, "it's not okay...i can still see the bruises on your neck." i looked away, bringing my hand down.

"look, i know what jimin did was wrong but just know that he felt really bad about it. he was just in a bad mood that day and i'm sure he didn't mean to go that far," rose explained.

i smiled a little and told her, "it's alright, rose. i forgave him ages ago,"

even though i wanted to be angry at jimin, i wasn't. not after everything he's done to help me with my investigation. if it weren't for him, i wouldn't have found my mum or her book. he's already paid his debt.

our conversation was interrupted when kai called out something, not looking away from the laptop. "i think i got him." goosebumps started rising on my skin as i quickly made my way over to kai (rose followed behind me with an excited smile). he clicked on the male's profile and it appeared seconds later.

'kim junghyun, 58,' it said but there was no profile picture. it was just the name and age. i sighed in frustration. this doesn't help find where he is, not even close. i asked, "why do you think this is my dad?"

"because jimin's mom is in the description," kai replied.

i froze, watching with careful eyes as he scrolled down to the summary.

and he was right.

there was one single sentence which read, 'park minjae, last seen in busan near the kami forest.'

"that's jimin's mum, isn't it?" kai asked, pointing at the name. i nodded, feeling my breath coming out ragged.

"dahyun?" rose asked, looking at me worriedly.

i had no thoughts. just when i thought i was close to solving the truth...

rose placed a hand on my shoulder and said, "this is good, dahyun. we can go to that forest and find her. she might even know where your dad is!"

kai typed something in the computer and said, "that might be our only option. it's weird because when i look through this, it's like your dad doesn't even exist."

rose raised an eyebrow and asked, "what do you mean?"

"i don't know, i can't find anything about him. not even a trace."

i sighed, losing all motivation to keep going.

rose looked at me and said, "come on, dahyun. there's still hope. let's go to kami forest and let's find jimin's mom. i know we can do it."

kai turned his chair around and looked at us. he nodded and said, "i said i would help, so let's do it. i'm sick of school anyway."

i looked between the two. they both seemed so eager to help. but something felt wrong, i frowned when i thought about ms momo. she tried to help me but ended up sacrificing her life.

"it's too dangerous. you don't know my dad, guys," i said, intentionally leaving the part about my dad being a gang member.

rose shook her head and said, "a little danger is what i need in life. i need some excitement in my life, right kai?" he looked at me and nodded.

"we're going with you."


	40. train

**dahyun**

the train was late. we were left standing on the platform with the chilly winds blowing our sides every few seconds. i looked over to my two new recruits, rose and kai. they shared a short kiss under the dimly lit lamps. i smiled.

kai travelled his eyes down and looked at rose's bag that was hanging from her shoulders. there were multiple key chains dangling in a bunch. there was one of everything, a cupcake, a unicorn, a flower, a dinosaur, shoes and lipstick.

"cute keychains," he commented with a smile. rose smiled with him and said, "not as cute as you." she leant in and they kissed again.

i looked away when i heard the metallic shriek from the train as it made its way to stop. after grabbing the attention of the other two, we all clambered on. the train to busan wasn't overly crowded like i expected it to be. i lead kai and rose to our seats. i sat in front of them. rose leant her head on kai's shoulder, closing her eyes.

the train inched forward at an excruciating pace. i rested my head on the window, watching as the outside started becoming blurry as the train started travelling faster.

just before i could close my eyes, i felt someone sit down beside me. a little confused, i peered over to who it was. only to be shocked.

"r-ray?" i stuttered, eyes widening at the sight of the older male. he looked at me and smiled, his yellow teeth on display.

"dahyunie!" he excitedly yelled, startling rose as she woke up with wide eyes. kai looked at ray with furrowed eyebrows, he asked, "who the fuck are you?"

"i'm ray, who the fuck are you?" the older man asked, looking at rose and kai. i tried hiding a smile but failed, jimin asked the same thing when they first met.

i answered for kai, saying, "this is my old family friend, he knew my dad." they nodded, getting a little creeped out by ray. i placed a hand on ray and asked, "what are you doing here?" 

ray cracked a smile and said, "i should be asking you that! i thought you were going to jeju to find your dad?"

"oh...um yeah, long story. he's wasn't in jeju so i'm going to busan, " i stated, looking at him wearily.

"oh, okay...wait..." ray said, looking around the seats to find someone missing. he asked with a confused expression, "where's jiminie?"

kai and rose looked at me, wondering the same thing. kai said with a smirk, "apparently still in jeju. unless you already killed him."

i sent kai a glare in his direction and sighed, saying, "yeah, he's still there. we separated ways."

"why?" ray asked with a frown. i opened my mouth but nothing came out. kai raised an eyebrow, waiting for my response.

"c-certain people told me not to take him.." i honestly told them, looking down at my feet.

"certain people?" rose asked quietly. kai smirked and said, "or the imaginary people in your head?" i looked at him and frowned at the accusation.

"no, not imaginary. my mom and her friend told me not to bring jimin," i said back.

"yeah? what did jimin say to that?" kai asked, continuing to scrutinize me. ray listened attentively, looking at me.

i frowned, keeping my eyes down, "he...didn't exactly say anything."

"so you just left him," kai said, unimpressed.

i gulped, not saying anything.

i knew it was a bad move to leave jimin like that. but i trust my mom and ms momo. if they said not to bring him, i would listen and trust them.

rose looked at me with sad eyes, she said, "dahyun, it's okay. you're right, jimin is heartbroken about his parents, he doesn't need more stress."

my ears perked up at her words, i looked at her with a small smile. i nodded and said, "that's exactly why i left. jimin is safer in jeju than being here trying to find my dad, who let me tell you, is a very dangerous man."

ray nodded and said, "you did the right thing, dahyunie. i don't want to see you both getting hurt." kai rolled his eyes and said, "i still think it was a bit harsh to leave him there. you should have at least told him."

i nodded and replied, "fine, i'll call him later."

ray smiled and asked, "so why are you guys heading to busan?"

rose answered, "we're going to the kami forest. apparently, jimin's mom was last seen there. we're going to try find her and ask where dahyun's dad is."

a fraction of worry brushed across ray's face before he replaced it with his usual smile. he said, "wow, really? jimin's family used to visit kami forest a lot. they had a small cottage over there."

"really?" we all asked with wide eyes, knowing that would be one place to look out for. ray nodded and said, "that cottage was really important to them. people even buried jimin's dad's body inside the house."

"wow..." i said, staring at him. ray continued, "but now people are saying the cottage is haunted, that there are ghosts and stuff."

"oh..so no one lives there now?" kai asked to which ray shook his head. he answered, "not that i know of."

rose looked at me, asking, "is there any point going then? if no one's there, surely jimin's mom won't be either." i thought about it and shook my head, saying, "no...we should still go. we might not find his mom but there could be more clues."

kai nodded and said, "that's true. we need anything we can find that could lead to your dad."

ray interjected and said, "can i come? i know i'll be of help!"

i looked at the other who just shrugged. i looked back at ray and nodded.

"welcome aboard."


	41. kami

**dahyun**

"one vanilla and three strawberries, please."

we watched by the side of the road as rose ordered our ice cream. we decided to get a quick snack since it was warmer in busan than in seoul. the sun was out and we were pumped.

"are we going straight to the forest after eating?" kai asked, looking down at his watch. i nodded and said, "yeah, it's three now so we should go before it gets dark."

he nodded back, looking up to see rose coming back with our ice creams. "thanks, babe," kai said, smiling at his girlfriend.

ray, who already started eating his vanilla cone, asked, "after we look in the forest, i have a friend who's letting us stay in his house. it's not too far from the forest." i smiled and thanked him.

after finishing our snacks, we started making our way to the kami forest.

_"kami forest,"_ i read the sign after arriving at the said forest. i had to tilt my head since the sign was also tilted to the side, showing just how old it was.

we stood just outside the entrance, looking inside what looked like a dark walkway covered away from any light by the bushes and trees. we all just stood there, rethinking the decision to whether or not go inside.

rose spoke the silence, "is it just me or does this forest look haunted?"

"uhh. it's just you because this forest..." ray made gestures with his hands towards the forest, "is not haunted in the slightest! we'll be completely fine." he wore a smile but it clearly showed how frightened he was.

i looked at him and said, "ray, if you don't want to come, then it's okay. you can wait here." i also looked at the other two, saying, "you guys too. if you don't wanna come, then stay here. i can go on my own."

kai shook his head and said, "nah, we've come this far. might as well come along, right rose?" he looked at rose who also timidly nodded, smiling at me nervously.

"then...do you guys mind if i sit this one out? hiking is really not my thing," a voice behind me said. i looked back at the older male and nodded, "not at all, ray. you can wait here."

"great," he replied with a smiled, saying, "just be careful, okay? you don't know what's in there."

"we'll be fine, don't worry. i'll call you if we need help," i replied. he nodded, looking swiftly at his watch.

"better get going now, it's about to be dark soon."

"thanks, ray, see you soon," i smiled and waved, leading the way inside. kai and rose followed behind me, keeping close.

"let's do this," kai said, holding onto rose's hand for support.

one hour later...and we were still walking in the middle of nowhere. we were being led by the footpath, hoping to see anything other than trees.

"i think we're lost," kai states loudly.

"we're not lost...we just have to keep walking," i said back, not looking back at him. i heard him groan and said, "we've been at this for age..i'm too tired." he looked back at rose who was hanging one of her many keychains onto a branch.

"uhh, babe? what are you doing?" he asked rose. she looked at him and said, "i'm hanging keychains as we walk, then we know where we went and can get back."

kai smiled, looking at her brightly while saying, "smart one, babe. at least someone is doing something useful around here."

i rolled my eyes, continuing to walk straight. i replied, "says the one who did nothing but talk shit the entire time."

"um, excuse me, if it weren't for me, we wouldn't have even found this place," he fought back, putting his hands up. i rolled my eyes again, opening my mouth to reply but stopped when i felt a drop of water on my arm. i looked up at the skies, noticing how the clouds were starting to bunch together.

"shit..it's going to rain," i said, frowning as more and more droplets of water started raining down. kai sighed and said, "great...we're fucked."

"let's just keep walking, we should be close," rose said, having one keychain left so she hung it on a branch. i nodded and started walking, trying to ignore the increasing amount of rain that was falling from the sky. the clouds in the sky started darkening, soon it would be pitch black.

rose took out her handy torch, lighting our path so we wouldn't walk into a tree.

"hopefully, it doesn't get worse than this," she said, only for the weather to turn into a storm. fast winds passed our way, the rain started pouring down endlessly.

"okay, we have to run!" i said, trying to use my bag as a form of shelter. the rain hit my skin like it was going to go through. we had to find shelter...and fast.

i bit her lip. a shiver ran through my body like an electric current. the rain blurred my vision, making it hard for me to run.

and soon, i stopped running. the others behind me stopped too.

jimin's family's holiday house. it stood right in front of us.

_we found it..._

"come on, let's go," i said in a hurry, approaching the door. i sucked in a breath as i gripped onto the door handle. with shaky hands, i twisted the handle and swung the door open.

inside was just a room, dirty and old. there was nothing inside except...a dollhouse. i felt goosebumps rising on my skin.

_this was the dollhouse my mom wrote about._

rose and kai entered after me. they also saw the dollhouse, asking me questions but their voices were drowned out and i couldn't hear them.

my only main focus was the dollhouse. for some strange reason, i felt drawn to it.

just when i was about to step forward, a brilliant shock of light from the sky came crashing through the roof. the thunderous boom came later.

a strangled cry escaped rose's lips. kai's eyes widening, stepping back from the sudden bolts of light.

before we could register what happened, there was another one.

a blinding ray of lightning that struck only a few inches from us, only this time...it managed to hit the dollhouse, causing it to break into millions of pieces.

another scream from rose, she frightfully stepped back and before we could stop her, she ran out the door.

"quick, we have to grab something and get out of here," kai said, picking up a few pieces from the dollhouse here and there. this would be good evidence to show to the labs, maybe find any fingerprints. i followed him, cautiously looking up to see the roof nearly falling apart and crashing on top of us.

i managed to grab a few pieces and stuffed them into my bag.

"let's go," kai said, hauling his own bag over his shoulder. i nodded and quickly ran out of the house, instantly getting exposed to the rain.

huffing and puffing, i was breathless as i sprinted down the track away from the house. the storm kept raging, blowing harsh winds in my direction. i looked ahead of the tracks, rose might have turned the corner to return to the entrance.

"kai, this way," i said without looking back, sharply turning the corner and ran faster.

then a scream. i snapped my head in that direction.

_rose._

"she's over here, kai," i stated as i rushed over to the said female. i saw her frightened figure kneeling beside a tree. her body was soaked to the bone and she was shaking from the cold.

she looked up and our eyes met, her lips quivered as she asked, "w-where's k-kai?"

i furrowed my eyebrows and looked behind me.

"he's right here," my words drifted away.

because in fact...rose was right.

there was no one behind me.

kai was gone.


	42. together

**dahyun**

"kai!" "where are you?!" "kai?"

it kept raining but we didn't stop. it was an hour after kai's disappearance and we were still looking. we walked along the muddy footpath, yelling at the top of our lungs while getting drenched by the rain.

"kai!" rose kept yelling, looking around the empty forest. i followed her, feeling myself out of breath.

'where did he go? it's like he evaporated into thin air,' i thought.

rose stopped and turned to look at me. she said in a strained voice, "are you sure he was behind you?"

"rose..i wouldn't lie to you. we were both running after you, i turned around and he was gone," i said, looking at her. even though it was nearly pitch black, i could still see her pained expression.

_i mean, of course she would be worried, he's her boyfriend after all._

i let out a tired sigh, after placing a hand on her shoulder, i said, "let's find ray. he can help us. he said he would wait by the entrance."

rose gave me a look, she said, "dahyun..we're freaking lost. we've been trying to find kai for the past hour and we've seen nothing but trees. we're nowhere near the exit!" she started crying in front of me, i knew the stress was getting to her.

"rose, please calm down. we'll find kai and we'll get out of here. i assure you," i stated, trying to stay positive for her. i suddenly thought about jimin, if only he was here.

just before she could say anything, there was a large rumbling sound emitting from above. we both looked up. the dark clouds were whirling together, more hurried winds pass by us.

my foot slipped and i lost my balance. the last thing i saw was rose's panicked expression as she reached for me. then i blacked out.

_'it's okay.._ _it's okay, dahyun.'_

a gentle voice spoke out to me.

_splash!_

we were underwater, trapped.

_'you'll be fine..don't worry.'_

the box..we were trapped inside again. water soon started filling inside the box, making me see the near end of my life.

i looked at the figure beside me, he was...jimin's dad. i held his arm, feeling scared. i looked different though, slightly shorter and a little childish like.

now i understand..this was three years ago, the day jimin's dad died. i was fifteen at the time..when he saved my life.

i saw him blowing up the inflatable igloo again. he was trying to save me again.

i continued watching him, completely calm. the water, now up to my knees.

he eventually stopped and gripped onto my arm, telling me to, ‘get in quickly.'

only this time, i didn't move. i just kept staring at him. i'm not letting him die this time.

 _'dahyun...get in, please,'_ he said again, motioning me to climb inside. but i shook my head, telling him to, _'climb inside with me. i'm not letting you sacrifice yourself for me.'_

jimin's dad looked pained and said, _'there's not enough space, it's alright, dahyun, get inside.'_

i shook my head again, not moving a muscle. the water already reached my shoulders.

 _'i'm not getting in unless you do,'_ i said, staring at him.

the water kept coming, it filled the entire container. it reached my mouth, i didn't move as i let the water travel into my mouth.

jimin's dad grabbed me and tried putting me into the inflatable by force. i didn't budge.

 _'it's okay..'_ i said, looking at him.

the box was now completely water, no air left. i watched as the man held his breath, looking at me with scared eyes.

he gripped my hand as we were losing our breaths. i felt light headed.

_this time..we both lost our lives._

i opened my eyes. his lifeless body in front of me, his hand still encased around mine.

i felt fear, nothing else.

but soon..

_i felt nothing._

_splash!_

"dahyun?"

my eyes opened ever so slowly. my surroundings started becoming more clear.

"dahyun," the voice called out again. i turned my head, seeing a figure sitting in front of me. as my eyes adjusted to the light, the figure was revealed to be rose.

she smiled, putting down the bowl of water.

"i had to pour water on you because you weren't waking up. how's your head?" she said, looking at me. i raised an eyebrow as i reached up and touched my head. i winced, a large bruise spread across my scalp.

"that was some fall. thank goodness ray found us in time, i don't know what i would have done," she spoke.

"nah, if it wasn't for your keychains, i would've never found you," another male voice spoke. i turned my head, seeing ray stand by rose. he smiled at me.

"how you holding up, dahyunie?"

"my head still hurts," i replied in a croaky voice. he nodded and said, "we gave you some medicine a while back, i'll get some more."

when he left, i looked at rose and asked, "how long was i out?"

"a couple of hours, it's two in the afternoon now."

i nodded, only to realise something.

"where's kai? did you find him?" i asked. she looked away immediately and shook her head. she said, "ray already called the police, they're out searching for him now."

i frowned, knowing this must really hurt her right now.

"i'm sorry..it's all my fault," i said, looking away.

"no..it's not your fault. it was our choice to join you, it's no one's fault," she said, holding my hand in reassurance.

i smiled, looking at her. from the way she held my hand, the way she looked at me with such care...it didn't stop me from thinking about jimin's dad. he was the same as rose. always helping me and making me feel safe.

he was about to sacrifice himself again but i stopped him. it was different this time, i died with him. i sighed, still ever so confused over the vision.

_why can't i figure it out?_

rose interrupted my thoughts, she said, "you get some rest. i'm going to talk to ray."

i nodded, laying back on the bed.

_that vision...i need to know what really happened._

_i need help._

_i need...jimin._


	43. return

**dahyun**

"so what happened in the forest?" ray asked as he handed me a cup of tea. rose was seated next to me on the bed, she also had a cup of tea in her hands.

"well..we were following the footpath, hoping to find that holiday house that jimin's parents owned. but then we got lost on the way. it was scary since it was getting dark. but we kept going and eventually found it," rose explained, taking a sip from her tea.

she kept going, "then when we found the house, there was nothing but an old dollhouse inside. it was pretty weird. then all of a sudden, there was this huge flash of lightning. it struck right in front of us! i thought we were going to die. then..i just ran out because i got so scared."

ray nodded as he listened carefully. "then what happened?"

rose looked at me briefly before saying, "after i ran away, dahyun came after me. after she did find me, she lost kai on the way." 

i blankly stared at the ground. all the frightening memories from last night kept repeating in my head. it all came crashing down on me, everything happened so fast. i didn't know what to do. 

ray looked at me, noticing how my hands were trembling. he wore a grimace, looking concerned towards my way. he sighed, "gosh, i'm sorry. i should have come with you guys."

rose shook her head, she said softly, "no, it's not your fault."

i suddenly interjected their conversation, "i have pieces from the dollhouse. maybe we could run it by the police."

ray looked at me and considered it, "yeah, that's a good idea. i'll call them and let them know." he stood up and left the room. rose continued sipping her, thinking to herself quietly. she looked calm and composed about the whole situation. 

i, on the other hand, was a different story.

my hands wouldn't stop shaking. i felt an unexplainable fear lodged deep into my stomach, making me feel instantly sick. my vision started becoming hazy, the corners of my eyes were starting to darken.

i lost my grip on the cup. it fell onto the floor, smashing into millions of pieces. the leftover tea spilt everywhere on the floor. rose flinched at the sudden sound, she looked directly at me.

"dahyun? are you okay?" she asked, getting up from her seat. she stepped over the mess and stopped in front of me, looking at my face.

i was a huge mess. you could see sweat forming on my forehead, my body shaking and my eyes widening with fear. rose placed her hands on my shoulders, "dahyun? come on, let's get you outside. maybe you need some air." she helped me up and guided me to the balcony. she slid open the glass doors and helped me outside.

the cold air suddenly rushed past me. i felt my heart relaxing to the breeze, letting out a beat slower while being in smooth tempo. my breaths came out calmer, too, causing a smile to arose on rose's face. "there you go."

our eyes met and i smiled, "thank you."

"girls? i just called the police. they're looking into it now," ray said, standing by the door. he smiled and said, "i know you guys must be pretty stressed right now. so i was thinking, there's a market near the bridge that happens every week. it sells anything you want, food, toys, clothes..it's really fun. i thought..maybe you guys want to join me? a friend might come to join us."

rose looked at me and smiled, she said, "we would love to come. that sounds so much fun. maybe it will make us feel better about the whole kai situation?"

"great! make sure to be ready by seven!"

**later that night**

"dahyun! we're leaving!" rose yelled from the door while trying to fix her hair. ray fixed his hat, making sure it wasn't slanted. it was seven thirty and we were just leaving. i was still applying my makeup (kindly sponsored by rose) until rose called my name again.

"coming!" i yelled, trying to apply the last bit of mascara. this took me extra long since my hands wouldn't stop shaking. the whole day, i haven't been functioning properly, i was so wobbly and dizzy. hopefully, this market will help calm me down.

when i was done, i followed the other two out the door. we walked together down the quiet streets. there were bright lights seen by the people who crowded around the area. 

"wow, this is beautiful!" rose beamed, hurriedly walking towards it. ray smiled and said, "right? you have to try the sweet pork buns, they are sublime!" they walked together to the first stall, excitedly paying for their order. i followed behind slowly, failing to make my feet work faster.

my heart wasn't into it. i was still traumatised about kai. deep inside, i knew it was my fault. he's probably still stranded inside the forest, cold and hungry. i tried to shake the thought away, the police are on it...they'll find kai.

"dahyun! here, we got you one," rose said, walking up to me before handing me a bun. ray called out, "there are dumplings over here!" rose's eyes lit up with joy, she literally ran towards the stall. i cracked a smile, somehow her enthusiasm for food made me feel slightly better.

this market place was popular, it was bustling with every kind of people. everywhere around me, there were people. as i was walking, a sudden weird sensation sprouted in my stomach. it was like someone was following me.

i turned my head, there was no one. 

"dahyun, here! we got you some," rose said, walking up to me again but this time, holding a tray of steaming dumplings. i looked at her and smiled, "thanks." she noticed my hesitancy and asked, "you okay?"

"uh," i quickly turned my head around again to check but no one was there. "no, everything's fine," i said fast. rose smiled, "okay, let's go then. there's a lot of stalls here."

i nodded, following behind the other two. they seemed to be having a great time, i smiled, trying to enjoy the moment with them.

"across the bridge, they sell candy floss," ray smiled, walking with rose along the bridge. i was behind, stepping across the bridge.

but then, everything stopped.

i turned my head. there i was... standing on the bridge with water flowing on either side.

_water._

_'you'll be fine.'_

i hissed at the sound. 'not that voice again.'

my hands grabbed onto my head, trying to tell myself, 'stop...stop talking to me.'

_'dahyun, it's okay.'_

'stop!' i mentally cursed, squeezing my eyes shut. a sudden wave of dizziness rushed over me again and i lost my balance. i moved towards the edge of the bridge, feeling my feet fumble in random directions. i held onto the railings as my head leant over, looking directly down at the rapid flow of the water.

_i'm going to fall in again._

_'dahyun! stop!'_ the voice yelled inside me.

my eyes closed as i felt my body being drawn towards the water. just when i was about to fall over the edge, a pair of arms grabbed and hauled my body up.

i slowly opened my eyes as my back was pressed against someone's chest. my heart accelerated quickly, not knowing what or who this was.

"idiot, always falling over and expecting someone to save you," a voice said behind me, causing an uncontrollable chill to travel up my spine.

_i know that voice._

i turned my head to look at the figure.

"j-jimin?"


	44. idiot

**dahyun**   
  
  


the moment our eyes met, i felt fireworks bursting in my stomach.

jimin...was right behind me, looking down at me with the same eyes that showed anger and betrayal. but, those same eyes made my heart flutter.

he looked so different. his messy brown hair grew longer, now passing his eyes. his lips were formed into a grimace. he still managed to look so magical. i was stunned as i kept staring at him.

he didn't say anything. his mouth opened as he was about to say something when - "jiminie!"

i turned my head, it was ray. he grinned with joy as he ran across the bridge towards him. i felt jimin's grip around me loosen as a smile approached his face too. the pair embraced tightly, ray patted the back of jimin's head, muttering small words like, "i'm so glad you're safe" and "good to see you."

my body stayed planted to the ground, watching them with complete confusion.

'what's jimin doing here? how did he know where i am? did ray tell him?' these thoughts clouded my brain. rose appeared from behind ray and her eyes widened at the sight of jimin.

"oh my god, jimin! long time no see!" she said with a big smile. even though jimin was her ex-boyfriend, she didn't seem fazed by his sudden appearance.

jimin smiled at her, saying, "rose? weird seeing you here." rose chuckled and said, "i should say the same thing to you."

jimin smiled as he replied, "yeah, i was in jeju for a while but then ray called me and invited me to come here."

"well, we're so happy you could make it! let's talk after getting some food," ray smiled, wrapping an arm around jimin. rose looked at me and motioned me to come along, i nodded blankly and followed them.

'this can't be happening. my mom said not to get jimin involved. he can't be here,' i thought while rose dragged me towards the bread stall.

"umm, can i get one croissant, three scones, five of those cute mini cupcakes, two of the chocolate doughnuts, one loaf of bread with jam and three pancakes," she said, looking at the flustered cashier, who quickly tried putting together her order.

he said, "and the total is-"

"also one of those muffins and three of those waffles," rose added, looking at him. i looked at the cashier, nearly laughing at his face. he turned and quickly grabbed the food off the shelves. he packed the food inside a huge bag and laid it on the counter.

"is that all for today," he asked with a dull tone. rose smiled and nodded, she said, "do you want anything?" i turned to look at her, a look of 'wow' on my face. she giggled and said, "that'll be all, thanks." after she paid, we left the stall, each holding five bags in our hands.

another customer approached the stall but before they could say anything, the cashier said, "sorry, we're sold out."

we were sitting around a table, it was beautiful as it was under the stars. i started eating rose's big bread collection, starting with a waffle. my eyes drifted to jimin who sat in front of me. he was talking to ray sitting beside him. jimin hasn't exchanged a word or even a glance at me. i knew he was angry at me betraying him but i hoped at least he would understand why i did.

rose was next to me, eating her pancakes with a smile on her face. she said, "dahyun, take the last cupcake." i peered over to the lone cupcake and nodded, smiling as i reached for it. but as i did so, jimin also reached for the cupcake. our hands touched momentarily. and the moment it did, an electric shock sparked between us.

i flinched and drew my hand back, looking at jimin. he was already looked at me and you guess it... he looked pissed. i felt my heart pace starting to pick up, i knew why he was glaring at me. after a few short seconds, he spoke to no one in particular, "i heard kai went missing."

after hearing those words, rose's sweet smile died down. she looked at the unfinished waffle in her hands and put it down. i felt another chill travel up my spine.

ray replied for me, saying, "yeah, he did. the police are still looking for him." jimin didn't move his eyes, i didn't either. there was tension in the air, everyone could feel it as jimin and i had a stare off.

i knew what he was thinking.

"i didn't kill him, jimin," i said quietly, looking at him with sharp eyes. a smirk was placed on his lips like i said something funny.

"oh really? then you didn't kill ms momo either right?" he asked me, making goosebumps rise on my skin.

 _'how did he know about that?'_ i thought, continuing to stare at him.

"no..i didn't kill her either," i said, almost in a whisper. ray looked at me worriedly, rose was too. the tension between us was unbearable, i felt like crying. he was still treating me like this, even after all we've been through. he still treats me like i was the killer.

i've had enough. the only reason i was doing any of this was to prove that i didn't kill his parents. but...he's never going to believe me. i'm never going to solve what really happened that day his parents got killed. i'm never going to find my dad and...i'm never going to prove i'm innocent.

standing on my feet, i quickly left the table, before muttering a quiet, "i need some air." then i turned and walked away, not noticing the droplets of tears that escaped my eyes.

**few hours later**

"dahyun, come on. it's getting late," ray called out to me. i was sitting hunched over by the marketplace. there was people working the stalls near me, they looked at my crying form with slight concern.

ray said again, "dahyun, come on. jimin didn't mean to say those things. he was just upset." i shook my head, looking away from him.

rose and jimin were behind him, looking at me. rose wore a pained expression, unlike jimin who scoffed and rolled his eyes. he said to me, "hurry up, we don't have all day."

i glared at him and shook my head, stubbornly staying in place. ray sighed and turned away, he said, "come back to the house later then, we're leaving." he left and rose followed behind. it was now just jimin who stood standing in front of me.

i looked up at him, sending a glare in his direction

"what?" he asked annoyed, looking at me with the same distant eyes.

"fuck you," i spat out.

"no, fuck you," he retaliated.

"no...fuck you," i said a little louder, not caring if we were acting like twelve-year-olds. jimin rolled his eyes, shaking his head. he asked quietly, "let's go. we need to talk."

i shook my head, telling him, "there's no point. i'm done trying to prove anything to you." he scoffed and said, "you don't get anything, do you? this isn't a simple game of hide and seek, dahyun. people have died, on your watch. the only thing you need to do now is to explain to the police why when somebody dies, it's always you being the only one there."

"what? it's not jus-" i started but he cut he off.

"taehyung? ms momo? and now kai?" jimin asked, raising an eyebrow, "people already know you for being a murderer three years ago. but now? you're the most wanted criminal in all of south korea."

my face paled. everything stopped in that moment. nothing had me prepared for that.

_no, no, no...this can't be happening._

my eyes were unwavering as i stared at him with shocked eyes.

'i'm the most wanted criminal in all of south korea,' his words repeated in my head. my mouth felt dry as i said, "b-but..i didn't do a-anything. taehyung..ms momo..even kai, i would never hurt them."

jimin watched as tears rolled down from my cheeks. when he was about to say something, his phone rang in his pocket. ignoring me, he picked it up quickly.

i watched his facial expressions change from nothing to looking shocked. he looked at me, holding the phone against his ear.

"they found kai."


	45. reflect

**dahyun**

it was the next morning. i was alone at ray's house.

soon after hearing kai's return, everyone rushed over to the hospital where he was residing. the police said that he wasn't badly injured but was terribly traumatised. i was worried and confused, we all were. what could have traumatised him to the point where he's mute?

i wanted to see him but obviously, me being the most wanted criminal in korea, i couldn't just waltz up at a hospital thinking i wouldn't be caught.

i grimly sat on the ground, legs spread apart. waiting for any news was getting too stressful by the minute. i didn't know what to do with myself in the meantime.

i decided to text rose to ask what was happening. she replied two minutes later.

"hey, we're waiting outside his room. he's okay but still in shock."

after reading that message, i replied quickly.

"do you know what happened to him in the forest? why he's so scared?"

but a few minutes later, i was disappointed to read her next reply.

"no, the police don't know what happened either. i'll ttyl, we're going in now."

with that, i tossed my phone away, laying back on the ground.

for some reason, as i stared up at the ceiling alone, my mind started to remember everything that happened over the course of this year.

it was scary to think that i was a criminal being chased by the police. it was like three years ago when everyone thought i was a murderer who kill jimin's parents. everyone treated me like shit. i was in juvenile for a year before i got released. that didn't change anything because high school was worse than juvenile prison. especially when jimin was there every day to torment me.

my eyes started watering at the thought. every single day, he would find a way to torture me. i would be so scared to turn up to school.

that was until..i met taehyung.

okay, now cue the waterworks.

taehyung..oh, taehyung. he was the angel that saved me from the hell i was living in. he was my best friend and everything was going so well. but that truck had to ruin everything. if i could rewind back to that day, i would take taehyung place.

i remember how broken i was that day. i stopped going to school. i stopped eating and sleeping. everything in my life was broken at that point.

then jimin turned up at my doorstep a few days later, telling me to come with him.

that was when the whole dramatic scene of me falling over the bridge happened. to my surprise, jimin saved my life. if he didn't do that, i wouldn't be here today. i also wouldn't have seen that vision of jimin's dad in the container.

that vision...it was the starting point of this whole investigation. because after that, we saw ray who told us that jeju island was the place to go.

then when we finally arrived at jeju island(after my ridiculous dream about momo and the votty school and how jimin saved me by crashing a van into a lake to escape the police). jimin had a head start in the investigation when he found my mum who was now a renowned author.

we found the address and travelled to where my mum stayed. but after we met her, she told me secretly to read the even chapters of the book. she also mentioned not to get jimin involved.

so that's what i did. i left jimin the next day and ventured alone with the book in my hands.

the next series of events flew by without a trace. it was an emotional rollercoaster from losing ms momo, my mother's only friend to reuniting with kai and rose at school. then that accelerated to reuniting with ray on the train. but then the whole forest disaster happened where we lost kai.

then things accelerated more when i bumped into jimin again, only for him to drop the bombshell that i was now the most wanted criminal in korea.

and now it's the present time..i was here waiting for the news about kai's condition.

i released a breath, closing my eyes.

even after all that, i still don't know where jimin's mom or my dad is. i only found out that my dad is part of a gang but nothing else. we even came all the way because jimin's mum was last seen in that forest.

something clicked then.

i opened my eyes and sat upright quickly.

"holy shit.." i breathed out. seeing my phone on the ground, i grabbed it quickly and dialled jimin's number.

he answered moments later, "hello?"

"jimin! i think i have a lead!" i said excitedly.

he groaned through the phone and said, "can you not yell? what is it?"

"oh, sorry. anyway, your mum was last seen in the same forest kai got lost in."

i could picture jimin roll his eyes from behind the phone, he said, "so what."

"kai is in some shock, right? rose told me he's really traumatised," i replied.

"he's shitfaced, more than traumatised," jimin said.

i rolled my eyes, telling him, "so do you see the connection? your mum..kai..the same forest."

"i don't fucking speak your language, just spit it out," jimin said.

i scoffed and said, "you idiot, your mum was probably traumatised too! there's something in that forest that frightens people. remember when my mum said your mum is still alive? she could be in that forest!"

i heard jimin sigh and said, "my mum went missing three years ago, i doubt she'd be hiding in some forest. she's as good as dead if you ask me."

i got up onto my feet, i said, "i still have hope. i'm coming over there. kai has to know something about what's in that forest. it has to somehow lead to your mum."

"what? no, you can't. you stay-" he started but i cut him off, "see you soon."

i hung up the line and ran out the door before grabbing a hat. i pulled the cap on started making my way to the hospital.

we're getting closer to the truth, i can feel it.


	46. sick

**jimin**   
  
  


"what? no, you can't. you stay-" i started but dahyun cut me off, "see you soon."

when she hung up the phone, i groaned while trying to call her back. if she came to a public place like a hospital, she would definitely get caught by the police.

the dial ended, no answer.

'shit, i have to stop her,' i thought, looking at my surroundings. there were police guarding the area. i was about to stand when the door to kai's room suddenly opened. rose walked out with ray. i stood up from my seat and approached them.

"how is he?" i asked, looking at rose who seemed really upset. she nonchalantly shrugged, looking my way. she said, "he's still in shock, he won't say anything. i'm just glad he's not too injured, just bruised around the body."

ray frowned and said, "the doctors said it'll take him time to recover from his shock. he has to go back to seoul." i nodded, remembering something, "oh, i forgot. dahyun is coming, she thinks she has a lead in the 'find my mum' project."

rose and ray looked at each other worried. ray asked, "but isn't she wanted by the police? what if they catch her?"

i thought for a moment and said, "by the looks of it, she could be doing a life sentence." rose's eyes widened and she spluttered, "w-what?! dahyun's innocent, she can't go to jail!" i rolled my eyes and replied, "are you sure about that? so many people died on her watch."

"i was just a coincidence. she didn't do it," rose said, looking at me. i stepped closer towards her and uttered quietly, "there's no such thing as coincidences." ray placed a hand on my chest and pushed me away from rose, he said, "hey, hey. instead of arguing, why not we figure out how to deal with the police? dahyun's coming any minute now."

rose sent a glare in my direction and said, "i'll go. she listens to me. i'll take her back home." i shook my head and said, "and what if the police see you with her? they'll be suspicious and you'll get arrested too! don't waste your life on some psycho."

"that 'psycho' is your friend, jimin. and besides, what other choice do we have?!" she whispered harshly, "i'm not just going to wait around until they take her, i'm going to help!" ray nodded and said, "me too. i know my dahyunie is innocent."

i rolled my eyes, not believing these two idiots.

rose said, "if you were her friend, you would help too."

"but i'm not! we stopped being friends three years ago when she killed my parents. she's nothing to me and i don't give a shit about her. i hope the police catches her so she can rot in jail," i said without thinking.

ray frowned at my words, he looked at something behind me. but rose seemed unfazed. i saw a few tears springing into her eyes. quietly, she said the words, "then why did you come back?"

i was taken back. i didn't say anything.

after my brief moment of silence, she continued, "answer the question, jimin. if you hate her so much...why did you bother looking for her...why did you call ray to ask where she was?"

rose kept her eyes on me. ray also turned to look at me. i was about to respond but stopped when they both looked away. they were looking at something behind me.

i also turned around, wondering what it was they were looking at. the moment i found out, my face instantly paled.

dahyun was standing a few metres behind me. she wore a blank expression on her face. she wore a cap which covered her eyes but i could tell she was upset. i started to panic.

_shit, she heard me._

i faced her and tried saying, "d-dahyun, i didn't mean to..." but she said nothing but walk straight past me towards rose and ray.

"is kai okay?" she asked them. rose looked at her and nodded, she said, "you can go see him if you want." dahyun nodded and walked with rose into the room. ray followed them before turning to look at me, giving me a disapproval look.

i sighed, looking at dahyun as she walked into kai's room.

_way to go, jimin._   
  
  
  
  


**dahyun**   
  
  


did jimin's words about me hurt? yes. was i surprised? no.

right now, all i could think about was kai so we entered his room quietly. ray closed the door behind him. i looked to see kai sleeping on the hospital bed. he didn't look too bad, just a few bruises here and there. i looked at rose and asked, "did you talk to him yet?" she replied, "a little. it was hard for him to talk though, his voice kept stuttering and shaking."

i frowned, looking back at kai's sleeping form. i asked, "what did the doctors say?" ray answered, "not much, just that he needed to go back to seoul. it's not safe for him here."

"oh, okay. does that mean we have to go back as well?" i said, looking at rose. she sighed and nodded, saying, "he can't travel alone, dahyun." i nodded. i wanted to be there for kai but at the same time, i wanted to find out more about the forest.

i said, "is it okay...if i continue my search alone? i have a lead and i know i'm close to finding jimin's mum...or even my dad. i just need more time." rose frowned and said, "but dahyun...it's not safe. and besides, even if you find them, what are you going to do?"

i paused, i didn't really think about that. i said slowly, "i'm going to ask whether i killed jimin's dad or not. that's the only reason i'm here. you saw how jimin talked shit about me. i want to change that. i want to prove that i'm innocent."

rose looked at me with worried eyes, so did ray. she sighed and said, "then i guess we can't stop you. kai and i are leaving but you can stay with ray." he nodded and smiled, he said, "i'm still willing to help, dahyun. i was always close to you and jimin's family."

i smiled, saying, "thank you, ray. i really appreciate it."

there was a knock on the door, it was a doctor. rose and ray looked at me and said, "you stay here, dahyun. we'll talk to him outside."

i nodded and watched as they left, leaving me alone with kai. it was quiet, only the soft breaths from kai could be heard.

i turned around to face him and i jumped out of shock. kai was laying in his bed, but his eyes were open and he was directly looking at me.

"shit, you scared me, kai," i said, placing a hand on my beating chest. kai didn't respond, he just stayed put.

that was until i saw his chest heaving up and down. he kept breathing heavier and heavier until he was wheezing. it was like he was having a panic attack. my eyes widened, i approached him.

"kai? oh my god, calm down. you're safe, don't worry," i said, putting a hand on his arm.

but my touch seemed to make it worse. he yelped slightly and flinched, moving away from my touch. my hand sprung back, i looked at him surprised.

"kai? what's wrong?"

he was looking at me with wide frightful eyes. his breathing just kept getting heavier and heavier. i stepped back, giving him some space.

then out of nowhere, kai stood up from his bed. he looked at me with terrified eyes. he took steps back, he was heading towards the window. i furrowed my eyebrows and said, "kai, what are you doing? get back here."

but he kept walking backwards.

i just kept watching.

kai's back hit the window. with a fast pace, he unlocked the window and opened it wide.

"kai?" i said, not knowing what he was doing.

he looked at me one last time before he slung his leg over the window's edge.

my eyes widened. i took a step forward.

"kai!"

but it was too late. he had already let go of the edge, letting gravity pull him to his death.

my mouth opened in shock.

_kai just jumped out the fucking window._


	47. jump

**dahyun**   
  


_"dahyun, please stop!"_

_"no! don't hurt me!"_

these voices bounced around in my head as i stood still in the middle of the room.

you know those moments when you have no idea what was going on around you? when everything in front of you seemed to move in slow motion?

that was exactly how i felt watching kai jump over the window to his death.

a cry escaped my mouth and a second later, rose and the others rushed into the room. rose saw the bed empty and the window wide open. her eyes widened as she ran to the window, looking down.

"kai!!" she screamed, seeing his dead body splatted on the ground below. people on the ground screamed at the sight. rose had tears in her eyes and started crying into her hands. ray followed and looked at the sight, covering his mouth in shock. jimin was also in there, looking down with wide eyes. he looked back at me as i stood motionless by the bed.

"what happened?" he asked loud enough so everyone could hear. i didn't respond, just stood there trying to process everything. rose was madly crying, ray was looking at me

"what happened, dahyun! d-don't tell me you-"

"no. don't you even say it, jimin. i didn't do anything," i said quietly, not letting him finish those words.

"then what happened, he just jumped out the window because he felt like it?" he asked a little louder. i was about to reply when the voices in my head started screaming once again.

_"dahyun! stop! no!"_

those voices...they sounded so familiar like i knew the people that were screaming. it was bone chilling to hear those words. they sounded so terrified like they are on the verge of death.

"dahyun!" jimin yelled at me and reality kicked back in. i forgot he had asked me a question.

"you better tell us the fucking truth right now..." he spoke as his eyes stared me down.

everything at that point was starting to overwhelm me. one, kai was dead. two, these voices didn't stop screaming in my head. and three, jimin was yelling at me.

at that point, everything was going to shit and i couldn't take it anymore. jimin kept yelling at me but it started getting inaudible. i couldn't hear him anymore because the screams in my head were getting louder and louder.

in the midst of all the screaming in my head, one person stood out from all the rest.

my heart dropped into my stomach.

it was taehyung.

i could hear him screaming my name over and over again.

_"dahyun! please, stop! dahyun! no!!"_

why...why taehyung? i would never hurt him...i would never hurt anyone. where were all these people coming from?

my vision started unfocusing, things started to blur. i could barely see jimin anymore. he was saying something to rose and ray. when he looked back at me, goosebumps started rising on my skin as he started walking towards me.

a memory suddenly flashed across my eyes. a man was approaching me the same way jimin was. his mouth was moving but i couldn't hear him.

i could barely see him mouth these words.

"be a good girl now.."

then i was back into reality. the moment jimin touched my arm, i couldn't take it anymore.

darkness consumed me once again and i fell unconscious.

**three hours later**

it was as if i came back alive. my eyes opened and i was back in ray's apartment. my heart was beating at a normal pace and my body felt relaxed.

"you're awake."

i slightly jumped out of my skin as a voice spoke behind me. i looked to see jimin, standing by the door with a towel in his hand.

"you feeling better?" he asked in a dull tone, sitting down beside me on the bed. i just looked at him, not moving. i avoided his question and asked in a hushed voice, "what happened? why are we here?"

"well, after your dumb ass fainted again, i brought you back here," he said while looking at me.

i looked away, getting too intimidated by his stare.

"where's rose and ray?" i said, almost in a whisper.

"they're still at the hospital. they told me the police was coming right before you fainted. that's why i took you away from there. if it weren't for me, the police definitely would have taken you."

i kept quiet, not knowing what to say. i turned my head to look at him. there was some weird fluttering feeling in my stomach as i stared into his eyes. it always happened whenever we stared into each other's eyes.

jimin was a hard person to understand. he always confused me. one minute he insulted me behind my back, then the next minute he'd save me from the police. he was either hot or cold, nothing in between.

"thank you," i softly spoke.

he also stayed quiet. our eyes just stayed locked with each other. there was a new feeling between us that i've never seen before.

jimin finally broke the silence. he said, "i think we need to talk. properly. without any yelling or accusing...let's just talk. okay?"

"yeah...you're right, let's talk."

he nodded and exhaled deeply.

"i'm just going to be straight up and ask..."

i held my breath as i waited for his question.

"why did you leave me in jeju island?"


	48. talk

**dahyun**

"why did you leave me in jeju island?"

i blinked. i don't think i was ever ready for that question. i knew he would ask eventually but now that he has...i don't know what to say.

jimin continued by saying, "we talked about finding your dad together. but when i woke up the next morning, you were gone. why?"

i sighed, looking away from him. should i just tell him the truth? should i tell him how it was my mum who told me to leave? of course i didn't want to leave him there alone.

"i'm sorry.." was all i said. jimin looked away from me, he started playing with his fingers. he said quietly, "i was worried about you. you just disappeared without saying anything. i thought you died or something. it was only until roy told me you were with him that i knew you were safe."

"i never meant to leave..it's just," i started saying but stopped midway. jimin looked at me confused and said, "it's just what? it's about your mum, isn't it?"

i opened my mouth to say something but closed it.

"i know it is. just tell me, you're not going to keep anything from me," he said, focusing his eyes on me.

"yeah..it's my mum. when we went to meet her last time, she told me not to get you involved. i don't know why but i think because she doesn't want you getting hurt," i confessed, looking back at him. he looked confused for a minute, furrowing his eyebrows.

"your mum told you to ditch me? just because she thought it was unsafe for me?" he asked, his voice pitch getting higher.

"yeah, i told you, i don't know why. i think it has to do with my dad being in a gang. she might be thinking that his gang might hurt you like they hurt ms momo," i said quickly, forgetting that jimin hasn't heard any of this before. he just looked at me with utter confusion.

"what..." he breathed out. "your dad's in a gang? he hurt who? what?! why didn't you tell me all this!" he stood up, starting to pace around the room with heavy breaths.

"i didn't want to hurt you, jimin. i only just found out, too," i said. jimin didn't say anything for a while, he was deep in his thoughts.

then he looked up, his eyes wide. "it's written in the book, isn't it. that's where you found out all of this. your mum, she was trying to lead you to the answer all along."

i gulped, nodding at his words, "but she said you can't know about it, so forget it." jimin didn't listen to me, his eyes darted around the room suddenly.

"where's the book," he asked, glancing over at me with blank eyes. i sat still, holding my breath.

"dahyun...where's...the book," he asked again more slowly. by mistake, my eyes travelled to my bag that laid in the corner of the room. i saw the book inside, unattended. jimin caught my stare and before i knew it, he was racing towards my bag. but i was also quick because i also sprinted towards it.

then there was chaos. we were practically tackling each other for the book.

"let go, jimin!" i yelled, kicking his shin. he cried out in pain but kept his grip on the book, looking at me with a determined look in his eyes.

"you fucking let go!" he shouted, falling to the ground, bringing me down with him. i landed on the ground with a thud. we were both fighting for the book, sometimes getting a whack on the head by the other.

before i knew it, i was straddling him. using one hand to hold the book, i used my other free hand to smack his hand away. jimin grabbed my collar and pulled me down, changing our position so he was on top of me. he finally got hold of the book but to my surprise, instead of taking it to read, he threw it across to the other end of the room.

i watched as the book hit the shelf before landing on the ground, completely destroyed. the cover was all wrecked and the pages inside the book were now crumpled. 

at this point, i was breathless. jimin looked down at me, also out of breath. 

"this is not what i meant by talk... you always have a way of making me angry, don't you?" he grumbled under his breath. i stared up at him as he straddled my waist. my breath got caught in my throat when he leaned in towards me, placing his hand on either side of my head.

he drew his face close to mine, whispering these next few words quietly and slowly, "you think this is all about you. how this is all about finding your dad to prove to me...that you didn't kill my parents. but guess what? this isn't fucking about you. it never was. just accept the fact that you can't prove anything. not with that book, not with your dad, not with any fucking forest."

i listened with a heavy heart, staring into his eyes with fear.

"aren't you tired, dahyun? just give up," he whispered, breaking away any last hope i had inside me. it was over. i felt trapped, struggling to get up. a sudden feeling erupted in my stomach, it was all too familiar.

it was the same emotions i felt in school when jimin would do the exact same thing. when he would smash me against the lockers, push me around or even when he tried to choke me to death. all those memories generated the same feelings of weakness, vulnerability and sadness.

"don't go back to being the old jimin," i managed to get the words out without crying. i saw his facial expression change from angry to somewhat confused. "what?" he asked.

"please don't turn back into the jimin that tortured me every day in school. the jimin that never listened to me when i said i never killed his parents. that day at the bridge when you finally agreed to find out the truth was the real jimin...this is not real jimin."

he looked at me blankly. just as he was about to open his mouth, the front door opened suddenly revealing rose and ray. we both looked up to meet their eyes. rose met eyes with me and i knew immediately that she was upset with me.

jimin quickly got off me and stood up. he asked them, "what happened after we left?"

rose didn't answer, she just kept her eyes locked on me. i gulped as i slowly rose onto my feet. ray answered for her by saying, "nothing much. the police came to our room and asked questions. they also talked to the doctors so everything seems to be okay now."

"ray, how is everything okay? my boyfriend just died for goodness sakes!" rose snapped at him, proceeding to look at me with the same fiery expression. ray closed his mouth immediately.

rose spoke with anger in her tone, "i'm sorry i have to say this, dahyun but i really have no choice now...i know up until now i've always been on your side...but now, i can't say the same. dahyun, kai..he's gone and the only person in the room before he died...was you. why is that? why is it always you? you were also the last person to see him before he went missing in the forest. i mean, what am i suppose to think, dahyun? that it's just a coincidence? i've always thought that but now it's getting ridiculous. i know i said i would help find your parents but i can't anymore. this is getting out of hand."

i just stood there, listening to her every word. it struck me hard since it came from her. the girl who always defended me when everyone else was against me. it hurt me..a lot.

my voice came out quiet. "i...i didn't kill kai, rose. i would never do that."

"i'm not saying you killed him. it's just you're always there when something bad happens, it's just not adding up," rose explained.

"that's pretty much accusing her," jimin said quietly in the back. rose's expression turned hard cold and she looked at him with menacing eyes. "says the one who, for so many years, have been accusing her for killing your parents."

jimin rolled her eyes at the statement and said quietly, "that was a long time ago." she raised an eyebrow, looking at him.

"oh , really? then how about a few hours ago when you said, and i quote, i hope the police catches her so she can rot in jail. was that a long time ago, jimin?" rose snapped at him, causing the room to go silent.

i saw jimin looked timid as his eyes travelled to the ground. roy eased up the tension by saying, "guys, let's drop it. dahyun, we're thinking of going back to seoul. we've decided to stop trying to find your dad."

i looked at him, a little bit taken back. rose's expression softened as she told me, "i know we promised to find your dad, dahyun but we've done everything we can. and jimin's mom? we looked everywhere in that forest...everywhere...but she isn't there anymore."

she continued, "let's just drop it okay? dahyun, you know yourself that you didn't kill his parents and that should be enough. if anyone bullies you at school, i'll tell them off." roy nodded and said, "also i'll take you home with me, dahyun. you won't be alone anymore."

i stared at both of them. jimin said the exact same thing a few moments ago too. they all just want me to drop it? forget everything?

"it's for your own good, dahyun. i think everyone is done, including you," roy said, looking at me. 

it was true...i was really really tired. for the past couple of months, it's been nothing but work, work and work. every day was a new day to find out what really happened that day at the port.

but now...it's coming to an end.

"so are you coming?" rose asked me. i looked up at her, thinking to myself.

if i go home, nothing would change. i would still be known as a killer, someone being chased by the police, a danger to the society.

_nothing will change if i go back home now._

but then i thought about rose's perspective, she's right in saying that this investigation costed the lives of some people. all because of my own selfishness and how i wanted to find my dad to prove i was innocent. and there's a limit to everything. i can't let anyone else get hurt because of me.

and finding my dad? i haven't heard anything from him in years, he's as good as dead.

rose's right...this has to stop.

before i answered, i looked at jimin. he looked extremely tired. this was hard on him too. it looked like we were both at our breaking point. how come i've never seen it before? the bags under his eyes, his hair arranged in all directions on his head and how he struggled to stand properly. rose and roy didn't look better either. we were all exhausted. i was so distracted by the investigation that i never saw the little things around me. most importantly, the people around me.

a deep sigh escaped my lips as i turned to rose.

"let's go home."


	49. back

**dahyun**

after our conversation yesterday, we were on the next train back to seoul the next morning.

rose was sitting beside jimin who for the majority of the ride was fast asleep on her shoulder. i was seated in front of them while ray was placed next to me, he too was soundly asleep.

before we left, rose had given me her mask and cap so i could properly conceal my face. there was police scouted everywhere so i had to take extra precautions. well, we all had to be careful.

everyone was quiet for the majority of the ride. we all knew this would be the last time we'd be together as a group. after this, we would split up and move into our separate paths.

rose and ray offered their places for me to stay but i declined. i didn't want to get them more involved than they already were.

i glanced over to jimin. out of everyone here, he was the one i didn't want to leave the most. sure, we don't get along most of the time...but he was still important to me.

but i knew, as soon as this train ride was over, i was on my own.

**two hours later**

"well.." rose said as she stood in front of us. we all had arrived in seoul that evening. she looked at us with a sad look in her eyes. ray and jimin looked at her with a smile but i couldn't.

"thanks for everything, guys. i really appreciate it. i hope we can meet again...bye."

i didn't think i was ever ready to hear those words.

she gave us one last smile before turning to the opposite direction. we watched as she walked away from us. it was painful watching her leave. rose was one of the most amazing people i've ever met. her kindness was unimaginable and i'll never be able to repay her.

ray broke the silence a few minutes after that. he said while looking at jimin and i, "well, i best be going too then." jimin frowned slightly as he nodded, he asked, "okay. where are you heading now?"

"back to the port, you know i have nowhere else to go," he smiled at us. when he looked at me and saw my expression, his eyes softened a little.

"and i'm sorry again we couldn't find your dad, dahyun. i know how much it meant to you."

i had my hands clasped together behind my back as i looked at my shoes. yes, i was disappointed but there was nothing i could do. it's all over now.

"don't worry about it, ray. thank you for everything," i gave him a small smile in return. the older male nodded and gave a gentle pat on my head. "i'll see you guys later then," ray smiled and waved at the both of us as he left.

soon it was just the two of us left. jimin looked at me, i also looked up at him.

"so...where are you going," he asked me as if i knew the answer. i pressed my lips together and said, "back home, i guess. how about you?"

"same. home."

i nodded slowly, looking away. i couldn't help but think...was this a goodbye? after this, would i even see jimin again? of course not. he's going to live his life while i live mine. we're going back to being complete strangers.

"i guess this is goodbye..." i said quietly, avoiding eye contact with him. "i know you've heard this so many times...but i'm sorry about what happened to your paren-"

he interrupted me, "dahyun, that was a long time ago." i sighed and shook my head at his words, "no, jimin. i'm still really sorry. i'm also sorry that i couldn't find who really killed your parents that day. if i could rewind back to that day, i would do everything in my power to stop what happened."

he was quiet. after i didn't hear a reply, i just started walking away from him. 

it's okay. i'll finally be out of his life. he won't have to worry about me anymore. all i've done is cause him to stress and stress. but now...it's all gone.

just when i finished that thought, he grabbed my wrist and stopped me in my tracks.

"wait, dahyun."

i turned my head to look at him.

"yeah?" i asked, looking at him with confusion. it looked like he struggled to get these next few words out. hesitation was vivid all over his face.

"i-i'll take you home," he spoke.

i stared at him, blinking rapidly. "huh?"

"i'll take you home, come on," he said and without letting me reply, he dragged me out of the station. i was beyond confused.

in the next few moments, i was sitting in a bus next to jimin. he didn't say anything as he sat next to me. he just stared out the window quietly.

i don't get him. he will never cease to amaze me. one minute he's cold, one minute he's like this. i wondered what was going through his head. he was so confusing.

"jimin, why are you-" i started but he interrupted me again by saying, "stop talking."

my mouth shut close. i laid back onto my seat as i released a breath.

_'so confusing.'_

a few minutes of silence went by until jimin spoke again. he looked at me, observing me quickly before asking, "how did you get inside the hospital a few days ago?"

i blinked. "what?

"the hospital. when kai was getting treated, we left you at home because there was police everywhere. but then you called me and said you were coming. i knew you could get caught so i was stressing out. but you just appeared out of nowhere. how did you get in without anyone seeing you?"

my mind flashed back to the memory a few days ago. it was when i walked in on jimin saying how he hopes i rot in jail. before that happened...what did happen?

i left the house after wearing my hat to conceal my face. then...

"i climbed through the window with the help of the vines," i answered, looking at him with a straight face.

jimin nearly let out a chuckle, he said, "vines? what vines?"

"there was vines on the side of the building. i just used those and climbed up onto the floor that you were in. i'm good at climbing things, jimin. you should know that." i said.

he just shrugged his shoulders and said, "if you say so."

fifteen minutes later, the bus stopped at our stop. we got off and started walking to where my house was located. it was weird seeing my old street after so long.

i remembered the last time i was here was when jimin dragged me out of my house to save me from those guys at school. if he hadn't done that, i most likely would have never seen that vision of jimin's dad after i fell into the river that same day. it meant that the moment jimin took me out of my house, our adventure had just begun.

i was lost in my thoughts when jimin abruptly stopped walking. i looked back at him, seeing him stare at something with tense looking eyes.

"jimin?"

i furrowed my eyebrows and followed his eyes to where he was looking.

then when i saw it, my heart dropped.

outside my house...there were two police cars.


	50. garments

**dahyun**   
  
  


i stood there in shock.

why were two police cars parked outside my house?

a range of emotions started flooding my insides. they were shock, confusion and grief. it hurt me, seeing my house bounded with police tape. it hurt me so much to the point where tears started burning my eyes. my lower lip trembled as i struggled to get any words out.

in the middle of my griefing, i heard jimin say quietly in the back, "let's go."

but before i could protest or ask questions, he grabbed my arm and started dragging me in the opposite direction.

"j-jimin, where are we going?" i started saying but jimin ignored me, continuing with his rushed movements. we turned a corner, now walking on the main road with lots of cars passing by us.

"jimin," i said again, trying to get his attention. he was too concentrated in walking while gripping my arm unusually tight. his hold was starting to hurt but i ignored it.

i was about to say his name again when two police officers appeared out of nowhere. they just exited out of a store that was a few metres away from us. jimin was quick to notice and swiftly walked into another random shop, taking me with him.

quickly scanning my surroundings, i realised we were inside a ladies garment store. as stunned as i was, jimin calmly walked to the back of the store to where the fitting rooms were. he stepped into a stall and pulled me inside. he closed the door and locked it, securing us inside.

i looked up at him, our bodies were uncomfortably close. the stall wasn't big enough for two people so our bodies were nearly touching. i would be lying if i said my heart wasn't beating super fast at this moment.

but even in a moment like this, i pushed away my stupid teenage feelings and whispered to jimin, "what are we doing? we're not allowed in here." he rolled his eyes and said, "well, would you rather be outside with the cops?"

i sighed, knowing he was right.

"then what's the plan? there's police everywhere...even at my house. why is the police at my house?" i spoke in a hushed tone.

"well, let me think...maybe because you're a fucking criminal?" he quietly yelled, looking at me with a dumbstruck expression.

"i'm not a criminal, they have it all wrong. i'm innocent!"

"why don't you try telling them that? i'm sure they'd love to hear all about it," jimin said sarcastically, looking away from me. i scoffed at his response and said, "jimin, can you for once be serious? what am i going to do? i can't go anywhere without the police seeing me!"

"will you shut the fuck up? i already know what to do," he snapped at me as he quickly took out his phone from his pocket. he dialled a number and waited for the person to pick up.

"what? who are you call-" he cut off my words by saying, "shut up."

i gave him a look but jimin was too busy to notice as he talked on the phone. they exchanged a few hushed words together for a few moments until he hung up.

"let's go," he said while opening the stall door. we walked out of the store and the first thing i saw...a police car parked right outside.

_shit, i knew they were on to us._

i was about to turn and make a run for it when jimin stopped me, gripping my shoulders. my eyes widened in shock as i looked at him, wondering what the hell he was doing.

the shock on my face never altered as jimin started pushing me towards the police car.

_okay, now he's just being insane._

jimin opened the door and made me go inside. he also climbed in and closed the door behind him. i looked at jimin like he was crazy. so many thoughts were running through my mind as i sat inside the police car.

'did jimin set me up? am i getting sent to jail? why would jimin do this to me?'

but before i could do anything, the car started moving. i looked to the driver's seat to see a cop, casually sitting there while driving the car to the main road.

"long time no see, right jimin?" the cop asked in his husky voice. a smile embraced on his face as he looked at jimin through his rearview mirror. jimin also smiled, he nodded and responded with, "long time no see, namjoon. thanks for the help."

"no worries, anything for a friend."

i blinked, not understanding the situation.

_do they know each other? since when did jimin make friends with a cop?_

jimin caught my stare and cleared his throat, he looked at namjoon and said, "oh, this is her."

i looked at the cop, he averted his attention to me, staring at me through the mirror. he smiled, allowing his dimples to show on either side of his cheeks.

"ah, she's the one everyone's after. may i say how honoured i am to meet you? i'm not even kidding when i say this, but you practically famous. everyone knows you for being a crazy serial killer."

"oh...um, thanks?" i said unsure, looking at him awkwardly. he chuckled and said, "i know you're probably freaked out right now but don't worry, i'm not going to arrest you. jimin told me how you're innocent. and i believe him, you don't look like the violent type anyway."

i looked at jimin, surprised he would do such a thing.

_jimin believes i'm innocent?_

"oh, sorry. i forgot to introduce myself. my name is namjoon, i was jimin's friend back in middle school when i transferred there for a year."

jimin started speaking, "but then the teachers realised how smart he was so he got transferred to another school. he's a detective now, working for the police. i told him all about your problem and he's willing to help."

"help? what do you mean help?" i asked, looking at him with wide eyes.

he paused for a second, looking at me with a different look in his eyes.

a smirk rose on his lips.

"we're going to catch the real motherfucker who killed my parents."


	51. clues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> might be a good idea to re-read chapter 17 if this doesn't make sense :)

**dahyun**

never in a million years would i imagine myself sitting in a police car, not getting arrested, but actually getting help. namjoon said he believed that i never killed anyone. but most importantly, jimin believed it too. finally, we were on the same page.

a small smile embraced on my face. i felt warm in my heart after the longest time.

namjoon continued driving to jimin's house. both men were catching up about school and work, all things i missed hearing because i was trapped in my thoughts.

but i heard one thing that namjoon said.

"oh jimin, this neighbourhood is pretty dodgy. i've seen lots of reports of thievery and violent behaviour around here."

to this, jimin raised an eyebrow and said, "oh, really? i never knew that but thanks, i'll keep that in mind."

the rest of the car ride continued with light conversations and laughs, soon we were outside jimin's house.  
  
  
  


a few hours went by. jimin was taking a shower while i headed to the kitchen, feeling a little hungry. namjoon was sitting on the counter as he ate some snacks. he looked at me and invited me over. i sat down next to him with a smile on my face.

i looked at him, quietly saying, "thanks again...for agreeing to help me. it means a lot."

"don't worry about it," namjoon replied with a smile.

"won't you get in trouble? by the police? what if they find out you're helping the killer..."

"dahyun.." namjoon started saying, "you're not a killer. that's all i need to say."

my eyes never left him, i nodded with the thought lingering in the back of my mind. he smiled back at me, as if he was mentally telling me that everything was okay.

jimin interrupted our little moment when he walked in, he yawned as he stretched his arms to the air. he had a towel slung around his shoulders and his hair was dripping wet.

"you hungry?" namjoon asked, looking at him while finished his bowl of cereal. he got up and walked towards the sink. jimin shook his head and said, "i'm good, bro."

i started pouring myself some cereal to eat, having no idea why i was eating cereal in the afternoon. namjoon leant against the counter and looked at both of us.

"how long have you guys been doing this?" namjoon asked, looking at both of us. jimin raised an eyebrow and replied confused, "huh?"

"the investigation. something tells me you guys have been at this for a while now."

i thought for a moment, having no idea how long it's been. i peered over at jimin who also looked confused. i roughly estimated the number, saying, "i think it's been around...four months?"

jimin nodded, "yeah, it's been a while now."

"right. so that means you've already gathered up a lot of evidence, yes?" he asked, sitting next to me. jimin watched as namjoon wrapped an arm around my shoulder.

"this should be easy, then. if you guys tell me what you already found, i can gather that information and we can get to who really killed his parents," namjoon said with a smile.

"that makes sense. but, it might take a while...it's a lot to get through," i said, looking back at him. namjoon smiled and stood up, grabbing my hand. he said, "well, let's not waste any time then! let's go!"

"uh-" i opened my mouth but just chuckled at him. "yeah, you're right."

i didn't catch the way jimin was looking at both of us. his lips were slightly curved downwards as he watched namjoon hold my hand, leading me to the couch with him.  
  
  


**jimin**

'why is he holding her hand like that,' i thought, watching them sit next to each other on the couch. dahyun was smiling at him, giggling along with him.

my thoughts were interrupted when dahyun called out to me.

"jimin! come here," she said, looking at me as i stood in the kitchen. after a few seconds, i nodded and proceeded to sit down in front of them.

"so," namjoon started, "let's go from the beginning. how did this whole thing happen?"

i exchanged glances with dahyun, who was also checking whether i was going to answer. she answered for me, "it started after taehyung's death. i didn't go to school for a couple of weeks so jimin came to my house. he tried cheering me up so he took me to this bridge. but then...something weird happened."

i saw namjoon raise an eyebrow. he asked, "something weird happened?"

she nodded while looking at him with uncertain eyes, "when we were at the bridge, i started feeling really sick when i looked at the water. it's weird, every time i'm around water, i get so anxious and i lose control of everything. that's what happened on the bridge. i fainted and fell in the water."

at this, namjoon gasped loudly.

"but it was okay because jimin saved me."

namjoon blew a sigh of relief.

i started talking, "when i managed to bring her back, she started talking shit. like how she saw a vision with my dad or something."

"a vision?" namjoon asked, looking at dahyun to which she nodded.

"yeah, that vision was pretty much the catalyst for this investigation. basically, i saw myself being trapped inside a container with jimin's dad. we thought we were going to die because water started filling inside the place. but just before i could drown, he saved me."

namjoon listened intently, carefully watching her facial expressions. he nodded and asked, "he died saving you?"

dahyun shrugged and said, "i'm not even sure if that vision showed the past. because three years when this happened, the news reported that only a man was found inside the container. i should have been inside with him but i wasn't."

"interesting..." the other male spoke while bringing out a notepad, jotting some words down. he asked her, "what happened next?"

"well, after i saw that vision, i knew i didn't kill jimin's dad so i tried convincing jimin. he said he wanted real proof so that's when the adventure started."

namjoon nodded. he then turned to me and asked, "jimin, why did you believe dahyun killed your parents? did you see her do it?"

i thought for a moment, thinking back to that day.

_he hovered over me and reached down, grabbing my collar and pulling me up. he brought my close to his face and angrily spat out, "your friend, dahyun? she killed your father and mother."_

_"i don't believe you," i bravely retorted, earning a tightened grip on my collar by mr kim._

_"why don't you see for yourself?" mr kim pushed me so i would see dahyun and my dad from a distance._

_my confused eyes wandered onto the two figures. dahyun violently pushed my father into an open container and slammed the door closed._

i closed my eyes at the sudden flashback. it was never easy remembering those events. opening my eyes, i caught namjoon and dahyun looking at me. i said quietly after a slight nod, "i saw her push my dad into a container."

dahyun looked upset instantly at my words, she looked away from me. but i spoke again, "but..." she looked up at me, i continued, "that still doesn't mean she killed him."

she raised an eyebrow as she looked confused at me.

i kept going, "because just before i saw that, i was hit on the head by dahyun's dad. he threatened me and forced me to believe dahyun killed him."

"wha- how come you never told me this?" she asked, looking at me through her furrowed eyebrows. betrayal was shown in her eyes.

namjoon wrote it down and said, "that's very interesting. so what you're saying is that dahyun's dad forced you to see something that wasn't true?"

i nodded, turning to dahyun and said, "sorry but...i actually don't think i saw you kill anyone that day. i was really dizzy from when your dad hit me and my eyes must have played tricks on me. i know i blamed you but it was because i was so upset over my parents."

dahyun kept quiet, looking at the ground.

namjoon said, "so you think-" but dahyun cut him off.

"so you're telling me that you actually _didn't_ see me kill your parents? that all this time...you knew it had something to do with my dad?"

i kept quiet.

"do you realise how much torment you caused me over the last three years? it was hell, jimin. but now you suddenly tell me that i didn't kill them?!" she said angrily, looking at me with wide eyes.

"i'm sorry, okay. you know it was hard losing my parents, i was just angry. i had to blame someone," i replied back.

dahyun scoffed and looked away, i saw tears brimming in her eyes.

"just so you know...i also lost my parents that day too. both our parents disappeared that day. instead of being there for each other, you tortured me because you needed to take your anger out. you made me feel so guilty because since i couldn't remember anything from that day, i actually thought i did it."

a tear cascaded down her cheek.

"but now...you're telling me that all of this could have been a lie."

"i'm sorry," i said quietly, staring at her with saddened eyes.

dahyun wiped her eyes and shook her head at my words, she said, "don't say sorry to me. say sorry to the people you affected in this investigation. people like ms momo...rose...ray...and most importantly, your friend kai."

she turned and walked away. i frowned, looking at the ground. there was a loud door slam, causing the house to grow quiet.

namjoon put down his notepad and sighed, "i'll order some pizza."


	52. mobbed

**jimin**

it was an hour after me and dahyun's little argument. namjoon and i were sitting in the living room, eating pizza. it was quiet in the house, only sounds of the t.v running in the background.

namjoon looked at his watch and said, "i better get going. my girlfriend is waiting at home."

"you have a girlfriend?" i asked, looking at him. he smiled and nodded, replying, "yeah, we only met a few weeks ago but i like her. she's cool."

i smiled back at him, nodding. "you better go then."

fifteen minutes later, namjoon had left and i was alone. i looked at dahyun's bedroom door, wondering whether she was okay. i looked at the unfinished pizza box on the table.

then a few moments later, i was standing outside dahyun's door. i knocked on the door while holding a plate of pizza with the other.

no response.

"dahyun? i bought you pizza. you must be hungry," i said, knocking again on the door.

still no answer.

"dahyun, come on. i said i'm sorry. we'll figure this out, now come out and eat."

there still wasn't any response, i placed my head on the door to listen to any sounds coming from inside.

but nothing.

i felt a cold wind rushing out from beneath the door. i furrowed my eyebrows, wondering how there was wind coming from inside. i turned the door handle but it was locked. i yelled, "dahyun! open the door!"

growing frustrated, i kicked the door open and quickly walked inside. it was dark with no one inside.

"dahyun?" i called.

i felt another cold breeze, i turned my head to see the window wide open.

_oh shit._

the pizza fell from my hand. i rushed to the window and looked around, trying to spot her. damn it, why did she leave by herself? does she not know dangerous people...

that thought was interrupted by namjoon's voice. i suddenly remembered what he said to me this morning. _'jimin, this neighbourhood is pretty dodgy. there have been reports of thieves and violent behaviour.'_

i tightly gripped onto the window sile and gritted my teeth with anger.

"fuck, i need to find her."

**dahyun**

i walked down the street, holding my jacket close to my body. it was a cold winter night as chilling winds rushed through me.

my eyes were sore from crying for the past hour. i was upset, more than imaginable. i couldn't believe jimin lied to me all this time. he knew he didn't have one hundred proof i was the killer but he still blamed me for everything.

but at least now i know ms momo was right about my dad, he was the real culprit. i just have to find my dad and his gang and end this once and for all.

all of a sudden, i felt a spine-tingling sensation run up my body. i stopped in place, holding my breath in the quiet atmosphere. it felt like someone was following me.

i turned my head and scanned my surroundings. no one in sight.

but then i started feeling weird inside, even goosebumps were rising on my skin. maybe this was a bad idea, i should just go back home to jimin.

i turned around but immediately collided with another person's body. i squeezed my eyes shut at the impact.

"you should watch where you're going," the figure said in a deep voice. i looked up, seeing a person i've never seen before.

"i-i'm sorry," i stuttered, feeling my heart rate accelerate. i tried to move away but he suddenly grabbed my shoulders, stopping me into place.

"girls shouldn't be out at this time, you never know who can be lurking around."

before i knew it, he smashed me against the wall. i could feel his warm breath against my neck, sending a shiver up my spine. my body was confined into place, i was trapped.

his hands travelled down and i felt my throat tighten.

"p-please! stop!" i cried as tears started flowing down my cheeks. this gave me a flashback of what happened a few months ago. the same exact thing where a guy was asking for money. only this time, this guy wasn't asking for money...he wanted to play.

"don't you want to have some fun?" the man asked, smiling at me wickedly.

i was crying, unable to respond without whimpering. i nearly mustered up the courage to speak when another loud voice called out from behind us.

"get your hands off her!"

we both turned our heads to see jimin, standing there with an infuriated look in his eyes.

'jimin,' i thought, feeling relieved by his appearance. the man's grip on my collar loosened and he approached jimin. he was much taller than jimin so he had to tilt his head up.

"what did you say?" the man asked in a threatening tone. jimin didn't show any fear, he stepped towards him and said to his face, "i said back off before i make you."

the man looked amused, "oh yeah? i'd like to see you try." i watched the two men, feeling sick to my stomach as i knew things would soon get worse.

the next thing i knew, jimin punched him in the jaw. then the man punched jimin. it turned into a full blown fight. jimin got punched many times, he then was tackled to the ground.

"jimin!" i yelled.

but the said male was too quick so he kneed the other man in the stomach, pushing him off with ease. the man groaned in pain, reaching for something in his jacket.

jimin charged at him, going to punch him again. but he didn't notice when the man pulled out a knife. he was quick and slashed his knife towards jimin, causing a large gash to appear on his arm.

i watched with tearful eyes as jimin fell to the ground in pain. the man stood up with a satisfied smile as he looked down at jimin. he spoke while out of breath, "next time, don't get in the way."

he proceeded to turn around, walking away from us. i saw something written on the back of his jacket. if i blinked at that moment, i would've missed it. the man disappeared into the darkness.

i stopped breathing while my heart was beating wildly. i looked over at jimin, who was laying on the ground in pain. with much struggle, i stood up and went over to him.

"jimin...i'm so sorry," i said to him, trying to help him up. my mind was running wild with thoughts.

jimin looked up at me and said, "are you okay?" i nodded, grabbing onto his hand and squeezed it.

was i crazy or did i just see the words 'votty' plastered on his jacket?

what does that mean? did we just meet one of the members of that terrible gang?

i shook the thought away, looking at jimin as he struggled to walk. he was more important right now, i need to help him like he helped me.

"come on, jimin. i'll take you home."


	53. thanks

**dahyun**

"stop, that fucking hurts!" jimin yelled as i applied some rubbing alcohol on his wound.

it was later that night when we were back at his house. jimin sat on a chair as i was crouched in front of him, holding onto his arm. treating his wounds was the least i could do. he had a huge cut running across his arm, no wonder he was crying like a baby.

"dahyun!" he yelled again after i tried to apply some gel. i looked at him, growing impatient.

"i'm trying, okay!" i shouted, looking at him annoyed. he rolled his eyes, not paying any attention to me. he was calm for a few seconds before he started yelling again.

"this wouldn't have happened if you just stayed inside the house!" he snapped at me.

i widened my eyes and looked at him with disbelief, "well, clearly i wouldn't have run away if you hadn't upset me! you should have told the truth about everything!"

jimin grumbled, knowing i was right. he rested his head on his hand, looking away stubbornly.

it was quiet for a bit, i continued treating his wounds without saying a word. i looked up at him and said, "by the way...thank you...for saving me."

when i said this, jimin finally looked at me in the eye. we stared at each other for a few moments, making me blush a little. i looked away, intimidated by his stare.

he leaned a little towards me and uttered quietly, "you're welcome."

i peered up for a second but quickly looked back down. i didn't catch the way jimin was staring at me. i was too busy trying to not blush.

my mind started drifting off as i looked at his wound. people keep getting hurt because of me. this was what rose was talking about.

i sighed, looking at him and said, "you know what...you were right. this is my fault. more and more people around me are getting hurt. rose's right...we have to stop everything. i know we both have a rough past and want to fix things, but i think it's time we forget about it."

jimin smiled a little. i looked at him weirdly, wondering why he was smiling.

"what?" i asked questionably.

"did you see the 'votty' written on his back?" he said in a relaxed tone of voice.

my eyes widened. "w-what? you know about votty?"

he kept smiling as he pointed his finger towards the other direction. i peered over to see a worn-out looking book casually sitting on a table near the kitchen. my mum's book.

"you read it?" i asked, raising an eyebrow as i looked back at him.

"even chapters, right?"

i blinked, not believing what he was saying. "but...how did you know? my mum said-"

"your mum said not to take me with you. i get it. but she doesn't get that this is my investigation too."

i stayed quiet, looking at him. he continued, "i know all about your dad's gang called votty and that scary kami forest. that's why i was so keen on winning that fight with the dude. they were the reason my parents died that day."

"oh..." i said blankly, looking into nowhere.

"now we know that the votty gang is real, we need to find real proof. i bet your mum wrote all these clues so it could lead us to the real killer."

i nodded, saying, "i thought that too. wait, you didn't read the last chapter yet?"

"because i know you didn't read it yet. that's why i stopped reading after chapter six."

i nodded and smiled a little. raising an eyebrow, i said, "maybe...do you wanna.."

jimin sighed and let out a chuckle, "of course, let's read it now."

an excited laugh escaped my lips, i stood up and quickly went to get the book. it was exciting, finally being able to find out the truth behind the biggest mystery in our lives.

i sat down next to jimin, holding the book in my hands.

"chapter ten, let's find out who the real motherfucker is," jimin said, leaning over to me to look at the book. i chucked and nodded, feeling surprisingly warm on the inside. it was a long time since we both felt so relaxed with each other.

i flipped opened the book and turned the pages to chapter ten. it was hard to read the words because of how much it was torn up by our fighting. i released a deep breath and read the title out loud.

"chapter ten, the final beginning."

jimin listened intently while preparing himself, taking a deep breath.

"ladies and gentlemen, here we are at the last chapter of the book. i hope you've enjoyed it so far! this chapter is a real thriller. it's going to be about my extreme obsession with planning and organizing my time."

we both simultaneously raised an eyebrow, confused at the writing.

"organizing time? the fuck...i thought it was going to be more exciting. are you sure it's chapter ten?" he asked me.

"let's just keep reading and see," i said, continuing to read on.

"time is one of the most valuable things on earth. it's like a very fast rabbit, racing ahead with no intention to wait for anyone. the humans are like the tortoise as we try to catch up with the rabbit (or in this case, time). this means we have to spend every single second we have one earth being kind, motivated and smart. if we lose track of time, we're going to fall behind."

"that's why i spend my time organising what i'm going to do every day. it's very practical and i suggest everyone do it. i also recorded all the memorable dates. may fifth 2000, the day my baby daughter was born. or the 25th of june 2008, the day i started working as a teacher. or even the most memorable day of my life, third of september 2015."

i stopped reading, looking over at jimin. he was thinking the same thing as he pointed at the page. he breathed out the words, "third of september 2015...that was the day my parents were killed!"

i nodded with wide eyes, "let's keep reading!"

"but yes, i highly recommend keeping your important dates written down somewhere safe. it's good to keep old memories! me and my husband always kept our memories locked away in a box. it was like a time capsule, where every memory that was precious to us stayed inside. i remember we hid it somewhere my daughter's old kindergarten. so many memories in that thing...wish i could see it again."

jimin stopped me. "okay, that's obviously a clue."

i raised an eyebrow, saying, "but it's just a box with photos inside. i've seen it before, i don't think it's a clue."

"dude, she's telling us to find that box. maybe it has everything we need inside."

i shrugged, replying, "maybe. let's finish this chapter."

"i taught everyone around me how to organise their time properly. i also thought them the importance of cherishing your memories. my husband and his friends kept their memories at their work. they kept it there so every time work got too stressful, they would just look at their heartwarming memories."

"but anyway, that's all i have to say about that.."

i tried reading the last few sentences but it was no use. the book was too damaged, the page was barely sticking to the book.

"i can't read the last paragraph," i said, looking at jimin who looked annoyed.

"this chapter doesn't make sense at all. i don't fucking get it."

"yeah, me too."

he shook his head and said, "the only thing i know is that whatever's in that time capsule, it's everything we need to solve this puzzle."

jimin got onto his feet, i looked up at him, seeing his eyes show determination. something i haven't seen in a while, making me smile.

"you coming or what?"


	54. fun

**dahyun**   
  
  
  


it started raining. really badly.

jimin stood by the main entrance, looking out at the horrid weather. we were both ready to bolt out of here to find that time capsule but after seeing this rain, we started having second thoughts.

"fuck..." he muttered, brushing his fingers through his messy hair.

"let's go later. i doubt we can find the box in this rain," i suggested, not liking the idea of walking in this rain.

jimin shrugged and just left the scene, muttering a quiet, "whatever." he made his way back inside the house, trudging his way to the kitchen.

"let's make dinner, i'm starving," jimin spoke, making himself comfortable on the stool.

"sure, i'll make fried rice?" i asked after entering the kitchen. he just nodded, typing away on his phone.

it was quiet after that, i started cutting some vegetables while jimin remained in his position with his phone. he broke the silence a few minutes later, "oh, namjoon is coming."

"oh, okay. what for?" i asked.

"not sure, he said he wanted to talk about something. maybe about the investigation."

i nodded, looking down at the chopping board. it's been such a long time since i've cooked anything. it was also the first time cooking for jimin...or for anyone really.

jimin stood up and left the room, leaving me alone. i quietly continued working, hearing the background noises of the rain pattering on the roof outside.

_rain...water..._

the inside of my head started feeling empty. i felt my heart starting to beat faster. my hands started shaking. my grip on the knife loosened, dropping it on the counter.

my eyes started wandering elsewhere, more specifically...where the knives were kept.

i just watched them sit on the counter, feeling myself being gravitated towards them. i stepped towards them, admiring their beauty. everything about the knives was precise. the shiny blade with its pointy tip, the old wooden handle to give more of the rustic appearance.

_it's beautiful...it almost makes me want to..._

my hand reached out towards them, wanting to grip onto deadly edge of the blade.

then the voices...the people in my head started screaming again. taehyung..ms momo...everyone started screaming.

_"no dahyun! stop it!"_

the closer i got to touching the knife, the louder the voices got. i was nearly there...

"dahyun!"

the sudden loud voice snapped me out of my trance, startling me. i looked at the door, seeing jimin standing there with a weird look on his face.

"you okay?" he asked, tilting his head slightly to the side. i stood expressionless to his question, wondering what on earth just happened to me. it was as if i was being controlled by something or someone.

"y-yeah..i'm fine," my voice came out quiet by accident. jimin raised an eyebrow, not convinced by my answer.

but before he could ask, the front door opened revealing namjoon...but he wasn't alone.

a huge group of people were behind him, all coming inside jimin's house. they were all wobbly looking while holding drinks in their hands.

jimin's eyes widened and he tried stopping them from coming inside, he asked loudly, "what's going on here?" he peered over to namjoon who was smiling like an idiot.

"we're having a party, it's friday night! come on, jimin," namjoon shouted, earning a cheer from the rest of the crowd.

before jimin could say anything, everyone barged inside, slowly filling up the inside of the house. i watched as more than fifty people entered the living room.

namjoon held his drink in the air and yelled, "everyone! it's time to get shitfaced!" everyone yelled along with him, all drinking their shots. someone was carrying a large speaker and started playing pumping music extremely loud. in a matter of seconds, this quiet house turned into a full-on party.

i just stood in the kitchen, watching everyone dancing and having fun. jimin didn't look happy, he saw namjoon dancing with a girl.

"yo!" jimin yelled as he marched over to where his drunk friend was, grabbing onto his arm.

"what the fuck, man?! who said you could have a party here?" jimin asked him to which namjoon just laughed.

"loosen up, jimin! we were partying down the street but heejun's mom kicked us out. we couldn't party outside because of the rain so figured we'd just come here," namjoon explained, taking another sip of his drink.

jimin rolled his eyes and said, "i don't care, you need to get these people out of here. i thought when you said you were coming, you were talking about the investigation. we're really close to figuring this out."

namjoon shook jimin's grip off and spoke, "i'm not a detective all the time, jimin. i have a life too. come on, let's have fun! you and dahyun both need to party once in a while!"

jimin was growing impatient, he groaned and muttered, "forget it."  
  
i watched as jimin quickly approached me, dodging a few drunk people on the way. i looked at him and said, "it's okay, jimin. they'll leave in the morning." he shook his head and replied, "i don't like parties anymore. ever since your friend died."

i lowered my eyes, a frown grew on my face. "taehyung...yeah," i said quietly. jimin was staring at me, not saying anything. we stood by each other for a few short minutes.

"i'm going to bed, jimin. i'll see you in the morning," i told him. he nodded and said, "goodnight. i'll see you tomorrow."

then i left the room, walking in my bedroom and rested for the night.

at least, that's what i thought.

**four hours later**

my eyes were still wide open as i laid in bed. the party was still going. the loud music was playing and i could hear people yelling and screaming.

i've been trying to sleep for the past four hours.

extremely annoyed at that point, i got up and left the room.

"this needs to stop," i thought to myself, walking quickly into the living room. my eyes widened as i scanned the room.

the living room was completely wrecked, there was broken glass everywhere, knocked out people on the floor and rubbish piled in loads.

"oh my god," i breathed out, looking around for anyone i knew.

_where's jimin? namjoon?_

i left the living room and was about to check jimin's room, but two figures standing in the hallway stopped me. it was dark so i couldn't clearly see who they were.

i squinted my eyes, trying to catch a glimpse of them. the bodies were close together and i heard giggling between them. i stepped closer and closer...until i finally saw who it was.

jimin...kissing a girl. except, it wasn't any girl...it was rose.

i had so many questions but i couldn't bear to ask because i felt my heart physically break.

when he kissed her, i didn't know what to think. i was shocked, hurt and betrayed.

i took a step back and without wasting another second, i ran out of there.


	55. cheat

**dahyun**

namjoon woke up after a little nap. he fell asleep in a bedroom after drinking too much. he managed to get up to see other people also passed out on the floor. without managing to fall asleep again, he opened the door. as he was about to step out, a person walked past him.

he peeped his head out to see dahyun walking fast down the hall. she opened the main door and left without a word.

if namjoon wasn't so drunk, he would have asked where she was going this late. but all he did after seeing her was merely shrugging it off, forgetting she even left.

he did, however, wonder why she looked a bit angry. he turned his head the other way to look at the other end of the hallway.

there he saw two figures, making out passionately in the dark. he smirked at the sight but noticed something. these people looked really familiar. he furrowed his eyebrows and slowly started approaching them.

namjoon soon realised it was jimin kissing a girl.

but that wasn't all. he recognized the girl too. her shirt, the high knee socks and long wavy hair that cascaded down to cover some of her sparkly crop top.

rose...none other than namjoon's girlfriend.

"rose?" he let out a croak, watching them with dazed eyes. he didn't know whether this was real or just because he was really drunk. he hoped it was the latter.

the two stopped moving and pulled away from each other. they both simultaneously looked at namjoon, their eyes widening with realisation.

namjoon looked at jimin and said, "why are you kissing my girlfriend, bro?"

jimin's expression changed from shocked to confused. he looked at rose and then back at namjoon.

"wait, he's your boyfriend?" he asked her. she frowned and looked away, nodding at his words. namjoon was at loss for words, he thought jimin was his friend.

"why would you do that?" he asked, betrayal clearly evident in his voice. rose moved away from jimin, slowly moving to namjoon. she had a guilty look in her eyes.

"i'm sorry, baby...we were talking and one thing lead to another...i'm really sorry," she said slowly, looking up at him. namjoon just stared at her with utter shock.

"i trusted you."

a fire flickered in namjoon's eyes as anger started coursing through his veins. he looked at jimin, eyes wide and full of fury. he clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white.

"park jimin..." his voice came out rough and hoarse.

he took a step forward, making chills travel up jimin's spine. namjoon looked scary, like really scary. jimin took a step back, causing his back to hit the wall behind him.

namjoon kept coming closer towards him. he had a dangerous look in his eyes. jimin knew that this wouldn't end nicely.

"after all i did for you, risking my job just so i could help you and dahyun with your dumb investigation...even after all that, you go and kiss my girlfriend?" namjoon asked him, tilting his head to the side. the smell of alcohol was clearly evident in his breath, but jimin didn't care. mainly because he was equally as drunk as namjoon.

jimin raised his hands up, telling him, "bro, i didn't know rose was your girlfriend. if i knew that, i would've never kissed her. rose and i had a thing in the past, remember? come on, man, trust me on this."

an amused laugh escaped namjoon's lips, he replied, "trust you? oh, that's funny."

rose covered her mouth in shock as namjoon punched jimin hard on the face.

"babe, stop!" she yelled, grabbing onto his arm. namjoon looked down at jimin, who was now on the ground, as he groaned in pain.

"you're a shitty friend, jimin. not only to me but to dahyun as well," namjoon harshly told him, soon leaving the scene. rose watched as he left, she hurriedly rushed to jimin's side.

"are you okay?" she asked, helping jimin sit upright. but the male was preoccupied. he stared off into the distance, saying nothing. rose furrowed her eyebrows and followed jimin's gaze. he was looking out the door that was wide open.

it was still heavily raining, except now, it was accompanied by thunder and lightning.

rose looked back at jimin, asking him, "jimin? what's wrong?"

but he didn't answer. there was nothing in his mind other than what namjoon just said,"you're a shitty friend, jimin. not only to me but to dahyun as well."

jimin's eyes widened as he came to a sudden realisation.

"shit, dahyun saw us...and now she's gone."  
  
  
  
  


**meanwhile**   
  
  


i stood outside my old kindergarten. it was pouring with rain and i was soaked to the bone. but it didn't stop the fire burning inside of me.

i wasn't thinking about anything other than finding that time capsule. i forgot about jimin, rose and namjoon.

nothing was going to stop me from finding it.

my mum's words reply in my head, " _i remember we hid it somewhere_ _around_ _my daughter's old kindergarten. so many memories in that thing...wish i could see it again."_

i knew exactly where it was. for some reason, the memory of them burying the box was so clear in my head, like it only happened yesterday.

it was buried next to the oak tree behind the school.

my feet started moving on its own. i was nearly sprinting towards the tree when i saw it.

the giant stood tall beside me. the arms of the tree swayed with the harsh winds. it wouldn't let some rain ruin its beauty.

i looked down at the roots. the soil covering them was soaked and mushy from all the water. my eyes laid on a specific spot on the ground.

that's it.

x marks the spot.

i went on my knees and without wasting any time, i started digging by crawling my nails into the ground.

i was frantic, looking like crazy as i destroyed the ground. all the years of torment and suffering has lead to this moment.

i kept digging and digging and digging. there was something powerful pulling me deeper and deeper into the ground. i knew i was getting close.

the feeling of need and hunger was overwhelming me. i never wanted something more in my life.

and then...i found it.

the time capsule.  
  



	56. truth

**dahyun**   
  


there it was. everything that i needed to solve this investigation was here, sitting on my lap.

i held the time capsule with trembling hands. it was covered with dirt, getting cleansed by the rainwater. beneath the layer of dirt, it was just an ordinary wooden box.

this was it.

finally, after all this time...everything was going to unravel.

i touched the lid of the box, lifting it up gently. my heart was pounding out of my chest. leaning in slightly, my eyes laid on the contents inside.

there was nothing inside other than a stack of photos. looking at them with curious eyes, i took the first photo on top of the stack.

my eyes started watering instantly the moment i saw it. a photo of me and jimin when we were kids. it was taken nearly ten years ago. we were sitting side by side, our arms wrapped around our shoulders as we smiled brightly at the camera.

those were the good days. life was so simple back then. i remembered that day, it was when we were having a family barbecue. my dad was cooking meat on the grill as jimin's dad poured the drinks. meanwhile, the mums were sitting on the table chatting.

that was probably the best day of my life. being there with jimin and our families, i remembered being so happy. we were all happy.

tears started flowing down my cheeks, it's been too long since i've seen these memories. they were nothing but lost dreams now.

even though this moment was tear-jerking, i still had a task in mind. i needed to find that clue on who killed jimin's parents that day. i needed to keep going.

i wiped the tears away with the back of my hand, proceeding to tip the box over. all the contents fell out, dropping onto the wet ground.

i looked more closely, there was nothing other than photos.

_where was the clue?_

i sighed, letting go of the photos. i thought back to my mom's book, reciting what was said in the last chapter.

'was i missing something? did she write anything that might have been a clue?' i thought, looking at the scattered photos on the ground.

i suddenly remembered something my mother said when we first confronted her a month ago. she said on that day, both my father and jimin's father were arguing about something. then i remembered a similar incident when ray said that same thing when we met him the first time in three years.

ray was the only one who was there when our fathers were arguing...

my eyes landed on a photo that was smaller than the others. i picked it up and looked at it closely, my eyes squinting carefully at each detail.

it was a photo of my dad, putting something into his desk. it was a pair of keys and a hammer. i furrowed my eyebrows, wondering why those objects were in his desk.

i looked at the keys, they looked like the keys that opened the containers. only my dad has access to the containers on the port.

wait...

container...

i gasped, covering my mouth with my hand in shock.

_jimin's dad was trapped inside a container._

so that means one thing and one thing only. jimin's dad was arguing with my dad. things got bad so my dad smacked jimin's dad with a hammer, knocking him unconscious. then with his keys, my dad put jimin's dad's body inside the container. making it look like he drowned by accident. after all that happened, my dad managed to slip away from the scene.

but hold on.

if that was true...and if ray was in the room with them...why didn't he report what he saw?

why didn't he tell the police that it was my dad? why did he help us find in busan when he knew all along who did it?

unless...

i let out a slight laugh, shaking my head.

'no, that can't be it. ray is innocent, he wouldn't hurt anyone.'

but in the back of my mind, ray did seem a little quiet when they were in busan. he didn't come with us inside kami forest. when kai was dead, he seemed too calm about it. he was surprisingly on the same train as us when we arrived in busan.

it was as if...he knew all along.

then suddenly, a memory of ray telling us how he wanted to be like our dads. he wanted to own his own port with his own ships and docks. maybe he was hiding his jealousy from my parents. maybe he killed our families so he could have ownership of the port.

maybe this was his plan after all.

after that final thought, i stood up and left the scene.

this was the final step. the murderer was either my dad...or ray. whoever had the keys and the hammer...was the real culprit.

i knew everything now.

my final destination...

the sea port of seoul.


	57. reveal

**dahyun**   
  
  


i had to get to the seaport of seoul...and fast.

taking out my phone, i searched for the fastest way to get there. it was only five minutes from the kindergarten but since it was pouring with rain, i wanted to get there quicker.

i stood close to the kindergarten, standing under the shade. my body was shivering, my hands felt numb. but on the inside, i was lit on fire. i've never felt this excited in my life. just the thought of finding out the real culprit made me shaking with excitement.

after finding the path, i walked out of the kindergarten and existed through the gates.

only to hear someone shout my name.

"dahyun!"

i froze, feeling my heart accelerate when i recognized the voice. i heard fast footsteps behind me, coming closer and closer.

'jimin?' i thought and turned around, only to see the said male running full speed towards me.

"dahyun, you're here...thank god," he said out of breath, stopping in front of me. i was at loss for words, shocked to see his appearance.

"w-why are you here?" i asked. he looked at me while being out of breath.

"i wanted to see you..."

that comment before would've made my heart do weird things. but now when i looked at jimin, all i saw was the image of him kissing rose. all the feelings of betrayal came back.

yes, i know jimin and i weren't dating, but i thought at least he cared about my feelings. i trusted him with everything, we grew really close these couple of months. i thought we were getting somewhere with our relationship, but then i see him do things like kiss his ex-girlfriend.

"well, you see me...now what?" i snapped at him, feeling irritated.

jimin took a little step back, feeling intimidated by the sudden tone of my voice. he stuttered a little, saying, "look... i'm sorry. we were drunk and...things just happened."

"why would i care? you're not my boyfriend, jimin," i said back, ignoring the harsh tone of my voice.

"dahyun, come on. i said i'm sorry. stop being mad at me," he said, looking me seriously.

"i'm not mad. just leave me alone, i need to be somewhere," i dismissed him and turned to leave him. i wasn't interested in him at the moment, my only concern was to get to the port.

i was about to walk away, but obviously, jimin stopped me by grabbing onto my arm.

"seriously jimin, i need to go-" my words were cut off when he pulled my body towards his. my face made contact with his chest while his arms wrapped around me, holding me in place.

i needed a second to register what was happening.

_what was he doing?_

he whispered so softly i could barely hear, "i messed up." i felt as if time stopped at that, everything moved in slow motion. even though jimin's apologized before, this time was different. he said it with so much emotion and it felt like he genuinely meant it.

i was in shock.

jimin rested his head on my shoulder. he spoke quietly, "i know i did so many horrible things to you...and i'm so sorry. if i could take it all back, i would in a heartbeat. please...i need you...don't leave me."

at this point, i had no idea what to do. i've never seen this side of jimin before.

his body was trembling as he hugged me. i felt my right shoulder starting to feel damp.

i furrowed my eyebrows and asked him, "are you crying?" he didn't reply but just kept silently crying on my shoulder.

"jimin..." i said softly, wrapping my arms around him and squeezed him tightly.

the wall he had built for himself over the years finally broke down. all the emotions he felt burst out, making this very hard for him.

we stayed in each other's embrace for a while. it was quiet between us. neither of us cared that we were getting rained on. we only focused on ourselves.

after a few more minutes, i let go and looked up at him. we stared at each other with intensity.

"i've already forgiven you for everything a long time ago...i guess i got angry because i had a lot on my mind. i care about you and to be honest... i need you too. more than you know it."

at this, jimin smiled brightly. he held my hands and squeezed it.

"yeah?" he asked to which i nodded, giving him a smile. "after all this is over, let's start again. you and me, together."

i nodded, a small blush evident on my cheeks.

"i would like that."  
  
  
  
  


**ten minutes later**   
  
  


we were standing outside the port. it was still raining and both of us were soaked to the bone. it took us a good five minutes trying to muster the courage to go inside.

we were both scared. inside the office would be everything we need to solve this case. in a few minutes, we would know who the real culprit was.

jimin looked at me and asked, "you ready?"

i exhaled and replied, "yeah, i've waited a long time for this. i'm ready."

"me too..." jimin replied, smiling. "it's crazy how far we have come. it seems like only yesterday when your clumsy ass fell off that bridge."

i glared at him and shoved him a little, saying quietly, "shut up..."

jimin chuckled to himself. his eyes averted its attention to the office.

"we just have to find the desk with the keys and hammar inside. the person who owns it has to be the killer. that's what your mum said right?" jimin asked, remembering what i told him a few minutes ago.

i nodded. "let's go."

we opened the door with shaky hands. since this port was no longer in use, everything was unlocked. we stepped inside, closing the door behind us. it was dark inside, not a single sound could be heard. the office was kept exactly the same as three years ago. all the stuff on the desks, including food which was rotten, were left sitting.

jimin whispered to me, "let's split up."

"okay, i'll go over there. tell me if you find anything," i whispered back, walking away to the right side of the room.

we both quickly scurried away to each end of the room. i opened the drawer of the first desk but there was just papers inside, nothing more. jimin was doing the same on the other side of the room.

it was quiet for a while. i continued my search at my own pace, looking through each desk carefully.

i came across another desk. slowly and gently, i opened the fragile desk drawer. there was various sorts of things inside. old photos, necklaces and books.

i sighed, leaning my weight on the table.

'this was the last table...and nothing,' i thought, feeling frustrated. jimin didn't look like he was close to finding anything either.

i was about to close the drawer when something caught my eye. on the left corner of the drawer, there was a circular hole on the bottom. i furrowed my eyebrows, looking at it closer. it looked like a hole with something inside it.

reaching down, i poked my finger inside the hole, feeling around for anything. suddenly, my finger touched something hard, like a metal object.

'okay, something's inside. how do i get it? how did something that big fit inside this tiny hole?' i asked myself, looking at the drawer.

the bottom of the drawer...was it just me or was it a different colour from the rest of the table? with this in mind, i put my finger inside the hole again. but this time, i lifted my hand up. surprisingly, the bottom of the drawer lifted along with my hand.

my heart started beating faster.

'a secret compartment...that can only mean...'

i lifted the layer of wood and looked inside. my eyes widened, shocked to see it.

"j-jimin..." i said quietly. somehow he heard me and stopped his search, turning to look at me.

"what's wrong?" he asked, looking at my terrified expression. he quickly made his way to where i was standing.

"dahyun, what's.." he asked but his words drifted away as he looked inside the drawer. "is that..." he whispered, pointing at the objects.

the hard metal object i felt earlier was in fact...a hammar. my throat felt dry. sitting casually next to the hammar...was a pair of keys. not just any keys, but the keys that unlocked the containers.

'oh my god...'

the wood piece slipped out of my hands and fell to the floor.

"y-you found it..." jimin stuttered, eyeing the objects with big eyes. he turned to look at me and whispered, "who does this desk belong to?"

i started to think while looking at the other objects on the table. i caught sight of one framed photo, standing near the computer.

my heart dropped.

it was a photo of me and jimin, when we were younger. a man was standing behind us, smiling at the camera. that man whom we trusted with our lives, a person we thought was our friend.

"it's ray..." i breathed out.

jimin covered his mouth in shock, he looked at me with wide eyes.

"w-what...what did you say?"

before i could reply, i heard some shuffling sounds behind me. a small voice called out, causing goosebumps to rise on my skin.

"dahyunie?"


	58. arrest

**dahyun**

"dahyunie?"

i felt sweat start to form on my skin. my heart was thumping wildly when the small voice called out to me. jimin was also frozen next to me, not moving a muscle.

we both knew who it was.

"r-ray?" i whispered, trying to keep my body from shaking.

jimin and i simultaneously turned to look behind us. our eyes landed on a man, standing a few feet away from us. he looked tired like he's been sleeping for days. his clothes were worn out and looked crumpled.

he opened his mouth and spoke, "what are you guys doing here?"

it was weird hearing his voice. it sounded so foreign, even though the last time we saw him was a few days ago at the train station.

"ray..." jimin quietly said, looking at the older male with a deadpan expression. from where i was standing, i could feel his body shaking. he was just as scared as i was, if not more.

"jiminie, you okay?" ray told us, a small frown attached to his face.

"nah, i'm feeling like shit at the moment," jimin replied. i stared at ray, wondering how such an innocent face could do such a murderous act like killing someone's parents.

ray raised an eyebrow at jimin's response. before he could reply, jimin started talking in an aggressive tone of voice.

"how can i not feel like shit? not when you fucking killed my parents!"

ray's facial expression changed from confused to utter shock. his eyes widened after hearing jimin. "what? jimin, liste-" he tried saying but jimin cut him off.

"no, you fucking listen. i can't believe after all this time, after everything me and dahyun have been through, it was you all along!"

"jimin, calm down. i-i didn't d-" ray tried speaking.

"how fucking dare you?! trust me when i say this, i'm going to put you in jail for the rest of your life!" jimin yelled, causing his veins to pop out of his neck.

i remained frozen in place, listening to jimin's words. ray was in complete shock as he listened to jimin. i saw his hands starting to tremble out of fear.

my heart picked up when ray looked at me, his eyes were dark and empty.

"dahyunie...please listen to me," ray called out to me desperately.

"don't..." my voice came out hoarse. there was a lump in my throat, making it hard to speak.

"don't call me that...i should have seen it coming," i whispered. "when we first came here a few months ago, we met you. we told you we were finding the person who killed jimin's parents and...you told us to go to jeju island."

jimin's eyes widened, coming to a realisation. "it was a lie...wasn't it? you made up that dahyun's dad was in jeju island just so we wouldn't look in seoul."

"what? no, i told the truth! dahyun's dad told me he was going there," ray replied back, growing anxious at our accusations.

"oh really? was that why you were on the same train as us in busan? or was it merely a coincidence," i said, glaring at him. my mind suddenly flashed back to that moment on the train. i remembered how weird he acted when i talked about the kami forest.

_a fraction of worry brushed across ray's face before he replaced it with his usual smile. he said, "wow, really? jimin's family used to visit kami forest a lot. they had a small cottage over there."_

_"really?" we all asked with wide eyes, knowing that would be one place to look out for. ray nodded and said, "that cottage was really important to them. people even buried jimin's dad's body inside the house."_

_"wow..." i said, staring at him. ray continued, "but now people are saying the cottage is haunted, that there are ghosts and stuff."_

"that stuff you said about kami forest...how jimin's family used to go on holidays there, that was also a lie, wasn't it?" i asked, to which ray's eyes widened.

"no, it's true!" he exclaimed, bringing his hands out.

"wait..." jimin looked at me confused, saying, "kami forest? i don't remember going there with my parents."

_wow._

i scoffed and looked at ray, saying, "there's your proof."

the older male was at loss for words, he stuttered, "l-look, i know how it might look but trust me when i say i didn't do it! you have to believe me!"

"what do you mean you didn't do it, ray? we have the fucking evidence right here!" jimin yelled, pointing at the hammar and keys laid on the table. "it's too late, you lost."

ray shook his head and pleaded, "please, i beg you. is there any way i can prove it to you!"

we thought for a few minutes, looking at each other.

"tell us what happened that day. we want every detail," jimin uttered.

ray took a deep breath and said, "fine...but let's sit somewhere else. let's go over there." he pointed to the opposite end of the room, where a couple of couches were.

when our heads were turned the other way, ray quickly jolted into a quick sprint, running towards the door.

i was about to run after him but jimin beat me to it. in a flash jimin was behind ray. he grabbed the back of his collar, bringing his body flying backwards.

"not so fast, old man," jimin snarled, pushing him to the ground roughly. he looked at me and tossed his phone in my direction.

"call the police."

**one hour later**

they locked the handcuffs around ray’s wrist. then they harshly pushed him inside the car, slamming the door shut behind him.

jimin and i stood outside the office, standing a few metres from the police car. there were more than ten officers standing with us, some going inside to look at the evidence that we found. it stopped raining, it was now quiet. it was nearly 4am in the morning, we were all tired.

i stared at ray as he sat inside the car. he was also looking at me from the inside. his eyes, even though looked empty, had something written on them. it was like he was telling me something…but what?

my thoughts were interrupted when someone yelled, “dahyun! jimin!” i looked away from ray and saw namjoon and rose rushing towards us. namjoon, out of breath, placed a hand on jimin’s shoulder and asked, “we heard the news, is it true? is ray the killer?”

jimin nodded, pointing at the police car where ray was held. rose saw ray inside, feeling betrayal build inside her body. she shook her head and turned to me, looking at me with big eyes.

“dahyun…” she spoke softly, coming closer to give me a tight embrace. i smiled slightly, returning the hug.

“hey, rose,” i whispered back, feeling an overwhelming feeling from her affection.

“you did it…” she said, smiling to herself. i couldn’t help but smile as well.

“thank you…for everything,” i replied, squeezing her tight. the boys next to us were talking about what happened. namjoon wasn't drunk anymore, he was more alert than ever.

“i guess you didn’t need my help after all,” namjoon said, smiling at jimin. he shrugged and pointed at me, “trust me, it was all her. i would've never been able to find who it was without her.”

i pulled away from rose’s hug and looked at jimin, feeling warm after hearing his words.

“true,” i replied with a smile, causing the others to laugh. i shook my head and said, “no, but seriously. thanks, jimin. i know it was hard but we finally made it.”

jimin smiled brightly, nodding his head.

after namjoon and rose left, jimin and i stood by each other. we watched as the police car with ray inside drove away. he was out of our lives forever. even though at that moment, i was supposed to be happy...i wasn’t.

“you okay?” jimin asked me, looking at the frown on my face. i looked at him and sighed heavily, saying, “i don’t know. you know the voices in my head? the people that keep screaming?” he nodded, remembering when i mentioned it last week.

“what about it? do you still hear them?”

i nodded, replying, “i thought that after i found out who the killer was, the voices would stop. but they’re still there, telling to me stop and to not hurt them. i just don’t get it.”

jimin thought about it, pursing his lip. he asked, “does that mean the investigation isn't done yet?”

that question caused chills to run through my body. i didn’t think i had any energy left to keep investigating. i mean, we’re done, right? what else do we need? i only wanted to know who killed jimin’s parents that day.

but there was a small voice in my head, ‘but wait....there's still so many unanswered questions. we only know what happened to jimin’s dad. how about jimin’s mum? why was she last seen in kami forest? what is kami forest, anyway? why did ray lie and say jimin’s family goes there all the time? why was there a dollhouse inside that house in kami forest?’

_how did i completely forget about jimin’s mum?_

the small voice started speaking again, ‘but dahyun, there’s the most important question of all…where the fuck is your dad? does the votty gang even exist?’

my mouth became dry.

i started thinking.

_when that guy mobbed me a few days ago, his jacket said votty. also that guy dressed in black killed ms momo. the gang can’t be fake, it even said it in my mum’s book. the votty gang is definitely real._

“dahyun?” jimin asked me, breaking me out of my thoughts. i blinked, looking at his concerned face. “we're done with the investigation...right?” he asked me again.

i was hesitant about telling jimin my thoughts. i knew he was tired, we both were. we've been investigating for months, this was supposed to be our moment to celebrate.

looking at jimin, i released a big sigh. even though there were still so many unanswered questions, i decided to leave it. we figured out the main problem and that was enough.

i nodded and smiled at jimin, grabbing hold of his hand.

“let’s go home.”


	59. voices

**six months later**   
  
  
  


it was a sunday afternoon, the end of the week. i was standing in a graveyard, holding three bouquets of flowers in my hands. i decided to end the long week by visiting some old friends, paying my respects to them.

kneeling down to the ground, i placed the first set of flowers on the stone head that read, 'momo hirai.' i smiled sadly, feeling uncontrollable tears sprouting in my eyes.

"hi, momo. i just wanted to say that...even though i didn't know you for that long...thanks for everything. i wouldn't have been able to finish the investigation without your help," i said quietly.

after a few minutes, i stood up and walked away, moving onto the next person. his grave was a few metres away from ms momo's. i exhaled, kneeling in front of the stone head. i carefully placed the flowers down.

"i know i don't come often and i'm sorry. just know that i respected you as a person. when i was desperate need of your help, you said yes. without you, i would've never found out about kami forest. thank you so much, kai," i uttered while staring at the engraved name, "i hope you're resting in peace up there."

exhaling once again, i moved onto the last person. i visited this grave often because this person meant so much to me. once again, i kneeled and placed the last bouquet of flowers down.

"hey, taehyung. it's me, again. i bet you're getting pretty sick of me coming all the time, right?" i chuckled sadly, looking down at my hands. it was always hard talking to taehyung...

"i miss you, tae. i really do. everyday i think about you. i hope you're doing okay up there. i hope i'm still your best friend...because you're still mine and... that's never gonna change," i smiled, feeling more tears build up in my eyes, threatening to spill down my cheeks.

i brought myself together and wiped away the tears. a smile resting on my face as i spoke to him. "anyway, i have a few updates for you. yesterday was ray's trial, he was sentenced to a lifetime in jail. isn't that great? we never have to see him again. some part of me did feel bad for him, but the other part of me just wanted him to suffer the same way me and jimin suffered over the years."

"but yeah, there's more good news. the police officially removed the 'wanted' tag off my name, i'm no longer considered a criminal anymore! people are now starting to treat me better. kids at school all apologised, saying how sorry they were for bullying me. even your friends from the football team said sorry. everyone was practically begging me to forgive them. i did, of course. it was a new chapter of my life, i didn't want to be angry at anyone anymore."

i sighed, looking at the photo of taehyung placed in front of me. i continued, "other good things happened too. rose and namjoon made up after their big fight a few months ago, they've been getting closer and i think getting pretty serious. i'm also keeping in contact with my mum. she's doing good in jeju island, she's living with her new family and is happy."

"i bet you're wondering how're things between me and jimin going? well, it's been okay. it was a little slow in the beginning because we both had our own things to sort out. i was feeling down with everything that happened and so was jimin. finding out your family friend killed your parents wasn't an easy thing to digest. but after weeks of trying to recover on our own, we realised that we needed each other to get better."

"we grew really close during that time. we helped each other. he helped me through all the nightmares i went through. i helped him through the times he cried over his parents. we survived the difficult times together. i learnt so many new things about him every day and it made me fall in love with him even more. we've been officially together for four months now. jimin's a really sweet guy, i'm really happy. life is finally good, taehyung. i just hoped you were there to see it."

as i finished my sentence, i looked at my watch. it was getting late.

"sorry, i should go, taehyung. jimin's coming home soon and i need to make dinner. i'll see you later, tae," i smiled while getting up onto my feet, leaving the graveyard.  
  
  
  
i stood in the kitchen, quietly working by myself as i chopped some vegetables for jimin's dinner. he was coming shortly, he was out the whole day. it was a busy time for him, attending meetings and interviews about ray and his parents. the whole country was shocked at the news that ray was the culprit.

in the peripheral view of my eyes, i saw something on the table on the other side of the room. it was some of the stuff jimin found a few days ago. it was old things that we thought were lost.

an object on the table caught my eye. it was a book, but not just any book...my mum's book. i was taken back, i hadn't seen that book since the investigation ended.

curiosity got the best of me. i placed my knife down and walked towards the book. i picked it up, my hands felt weird touching it. the book looked old and broken, probably because of that brawl i had with jimin in busan.

i casually flipped through the pages, skimming through some words that i had read before. i read through all the even chapters with all the clues.

chapter 2, then chapter 4...chapter 10.

i paused, holding onto the book with stiff hands.

wait...where's chapter 6?

i quickly went through the book again to find the chapter, but nothing. a whole chapter was missing. why didn't i notice that before?

the fight i had with jimin must have damaged the book so badly that some pages ripped off.

but then that meant...some clues were left unread.

just then, the rain picked up. i could hear the pitter-patter sounds of the water hitting the roof above me. it all started going downhill from there.

_rain...water..._

a familiar sensation came over me. my head started emptying, it was completely blank. my heart started thumping wildly. i couldn't control anything in my body, it had a mind of its own.

it was suddenly hard to breathe and my vision started getting blurry. the voices in my mind kept screaming. except for this time, they were telling me something different.

_"go to the kitchen. dahyun, go to the kitchen!"_

my body moved on its own, making its way to the kitchen. i didn't know what i was doing.

" _you see those knives? grab them! grab them, dahyun!"_

my eyes wandered around the counter until they caught sight of the knife laying near the half-cut vegetables. my hands reached out and gripped onto the handle of the knife, feeling its velvety texture.

my breaths came out hot, my insides were burning. i couldn't see anything but darkness. i felt my blood pumping wildly through my veins.

strangely...i felt really good.

suddenly, the front door opened. i snapped my head towards the direction. my eyes were wide, my mouth drooling with saliva. i heard a small voice coming from the hallway.

"dahyun?"

a figure appeared in the door. he looked at my state, seeing the horrific expression on my face and the knife clutched in my hand.

"jimin..." i spoke hoarsely.

even though no one was talking and it was quiet, the voices in my head were screaming louder.

_"what are you waiting for?"_

after listening to the voices, i took a small step forward. my eyes were latched onto jimin, walking slowly towards him.

jimin started feeling scared, noticing the knife in my hand.

"dahyun...what are you.." he said slowly, backing away from me as i came closer.

a smile creeping on my face, i haven't felt this much excitement since i pushed kai off the window in busan.

i walked closer and closer, taking each step with the help of the millions of voices in my head.

and that was it.

i didn't remember anything else from that night.

all i know was that that was the last time jimin ever saw light again. he left this earth, leaving me here to be buried in the guilt.

but it was okay.

it wasn't my fault, it was the voices in my head.

**BEEP**

he pushed the button to stop recording. after clearing his throat, he leaned into the microphone and said, "patient 139. name is kim dahyun. this audio recording tells her version of the story of how she killed the following people:

\- hirai momo

\- kim jongin (kai)

\- kim taehyung

\- park jimin

audio package 15, take 6."

after pressing the button to stop recording, he leaned back onto his chair. he felt a massive weight being lifted off his shoulders.

his colleague entered the room and asked, "hey, i got your text. is it true?"

the man turned and looked at him, nodding at his words.

"yeah, call the police. tell them that kim dahyun finally talked."


	60. end

**dahyun**

it was as if she woke up from a long dream. her eyes gradually opened, struggling to take in the light that poured through the small window. her back was in pain due to the hard mattress she slept on, the springs felt old as her body tried to move in a more comfortable position.

a thought clicked into her head.

wait... what happened?

at that thought, she quickly sat upright to scan her surroundings.

but wait...she couldn't stand up. she peered down to see her hands chained down to the bed.

"the hell? why am i chained up?" she said to herself, trying to tug free from the locked chains. her struggling came to no use, these chains were securely locked.

while she was struggling, the door opened and a figure entered into the small room. she peered up, not recognising the male. he stood timidly by the wall, wearing a white lab coat and held a folder in his hands.

"hi dahyun, do you feel better?" the guy in the lab coat asked.

dahyun stayed quiet, growing scared in her bones.

'who was he? where am i? why am i chained up? is this another one of my visions?'

"how were the dreams last night? you looked pretty shaken up yesterday," the man asked her, writing something in his hands after noticing her hands trembling.

"they'll get worse, just letting you know," he said, looking at her with content eyes.

she blinked in confusion, several thoughts running all over her face. the doctor and dahyun stayed quiet for a few minutes. she swallowed a little bit of fear before speaking, "w-wait...how did you know about my visions?"

"they've been getting worse these days, especially since we stopped giving you your pills," he replied back.

"what? pills? what are you talking about, i'm not on any medication."

"that's what you think. i've been giving you pills for the past year, dahyun. it's to help with your visions and the voices you keep hearing in your head. i'm here to help you."

dahyun scoffed in disbelief, shaking her head to his words. "what are you talking about? i've been living in seoul, not here," she argued back.

the doctor shook his head, saying, "i'm afraid that's incorrect. you're a patient of the votty institution. you've been here for a year and a half."

votty institution??

an amused laugh escaped dahyun's lips as she looked at him, telling him, "that's some weird shit you're saying. i live in seoul with my boyfriend."

after she spoke those words, the door opened again but this time, a male walked in who dahyun recognised immediately. her eyes widened at the sight of him.

"n-namjoon?"

he gave her a small smile, standing timidly next to the doctor. he said quietly, "hey, dahyun."

"w-wha..." dahyun started as she stared at him in shock, she cleared her throat and asked, "w-what's going on here, namjoon...why am i here? why are you here? where's jimin?"

"i'm sorry, dahyun," was all namjoon said, staying quiet. dahyun looked at him disappointed, growing more scared as her current situation.

"did you betray me? all that stuff about helping each other...was that all just a big lie?" she asked with hurt running through the tone of her voice.

the doctor butted in and told us, "we're wasting time, dahyun. we need to do your final check-up, if this doesn't carry out accordingly, certain actions will be taken."

dahyun stared at him with shock, feeling her breaths starting to flow irregularly.

"wait, doctor, please. i'm innocent, whatever reason i'm here for, it's all wrong," she told him.

"is that so? do you not remember what you told us a few days ago?" he asked, tilting his head to the side, writing a little note in his pad.

"no, i don't. i never said anything. last thing i remember was making dinner for jimin back in my house. i want to leave so let me go!" dahyun yelled, growing impatient.

namjoon frowned at her words, looking down at the ground. the doctor tapped his pen on the side of the notepad, biting his lip as he thought to himself.

"you really don't remember? you confessed two days ago. you told the whole story from meeting taehyung to arresting ray at the port," the doctor told her.

"what...how do you know about that? have you been stalking me? that's against the law, i can call the cops on-" her words were interrupted by the doctor, who stomped his foot on the floor.

"focus, dahyun! we have been watching you as a patient of this institution," he urged me.

"he's telling the truth, dahyun," namjoon said quietly, looking over her with concerned eyes. dahyun squinted her eyes at him, feeling anger boil inside her body.

"after everything we've been through...you're really going to convince me that i'm crazy?" she asked namjoon, looking at him with wide eyes.

the doctor sighed and pulled out a piece of paper from his folder, telling me, "here's a copy of your report. you were here as a patient three years ago when jimin's parents died. during that time, you assaulted four nurses and doctors and you somehow managed to cause a power break in the whole buil-"

"w-wait, wait. what?" dahyun said with concern. the doctor gave her the document while saying, "read it for yourself then."

dahyun snatched the document out of his hands and hesitated before starting to read.

"name, kim dahyun. age, 18. she was born in seoul, lived there for all her life until the day of jimin's parent's death, where she spent one year at this hospital. after that year, she was sent back to school. from there she committed various acts of crime on several people."

her hand started to shake a little after reading but continued swiftly.

"the patient is highly delusional. she is known for her proclivity towards violence. she shows no remorse for her crimes-" she stopped reading and threw the paper away.

"i've had enough of this bullshit, where's jimin?! where is he!" the female yelled, staring at the two men in front of her.

the doctor stomped his foot on the ground again to silence her. dahyun closed her mouth instantly, staring at him. namjoon stood there watching them, feeling his hands started to sweat.

"alright, dahyun. you give me no choice. you want to know the truth? well, here it is," the doctor spoke, "you are a patient here, dahyun. you have been for the past year."

dahyun scoffed at his words, saying, "that's bullshit..."

the doctor continued, "you killed people and since you can't forgive yourself for it, you invented another story to make yourself feel better."

namjoon watched as dahyun slowly started to get agitated.

"you created a highly developed alternative scenario in which shows your father being the killer instead of you, dahyun. you were inside that container with jimin's dad by accident, then your dad killed jimin's mom in kami forest after she tried to run away, then his gang set up to kill the people close to you like taehyung, ms momo and kai. but all of that...is not real."

dahyun stared at him with blank eyes, feeling her heart beating wildly out of her chest.

"what really happened was completely different..." he spoke slowly.

"you killed jimin's parents and was arrested. they realised you weren't right in the head so you got sent here. your mother was too distraught of what you had done that she left you and moved away to jeju. after you spent a year here, we released you because you were okay. the three years you spent in school was fine, you had ms jung as your counsellor who kept you tamed."

dahyun had a quick flashback.

_there would be people trying to help me with my 'problems'. i was sent to counselling every day. it was always in the mornings which wasn't bad since i got to miss assembly. it was always walking out to my first period that was the problem._

"ms jung..." she said slowly, her eyes lowering to the ground. she remembered meeting her the day she went to look for jimin.

the doctor nodded, looking over his notes and read, "yes, ms jung. i have a few notes that were sent by her. she said, 'patient still remains to have problems. consult with professionals.'"

dahyun looked up at the doctor, feeling anxiety spread through her body. she asked timidly, "did i just hear you say that...i killed jimin's parents?"

"yes."

there was some silence in the room.

"no, i didn't," she said. the doctor sighed and repeated, "yes, you did."

"no, i didn't!" dahyun yelled, looking at him angrily.

the doctor grew impatient and pulled out another document from his folder. he started reading the words written.

"the first victim being kim taehyung. it was known that he died due to colliding with a truck. what wasn't written down by the police at the time was that it was, in fact, dahyun who pushed him in front of the truck, therefore ruling his death as murder."

dahyun's eyes widened in shock, words struggled to escape her mouth, "w-wha.."

"then ms momo, you stabbed her in the stomach," the doctor read, "then it was kai, who you nearly managed to kill in the forest but he got away. then at the hospital where you met again, you decided to push him off the wind-"

"why would i hurt them! give me one reason why i would touch them!" dahyun shouted, interrupting his words. her eyes started forming tears, streaking down her cheeks.

the doctor replied calmly, "because right before you killed them, they accused you of being a murderer...and you would do anything not to be a killer."

dahyun looked at him stunned. she experienced another flashback, startling her.

_taehyung looked at her as they walked back to the car. he asked her, "listen dahyun, i was thinking. i know you keep getting shit from others because they think you killed people. my uncle's a police chief, maybe i can get him to find the truth for you?"_

_i looked at him with wide eyes. all of a sudden, the voices started speaking._

_"no, you have to stop him!_ _he's going to find out the truth! the truth that you are the killer!"_

_taehyung noticed i forgot my jacket and quickly offered, "i'll get it for you, you stay here."_

dahyun creased her eyebrows, thinking to herself, 'that's different from what i remember.' the doctor and namjoon watched her intently, knowing things were finally coming together.

she experienced another flashback, this time with ms momo.

_"your dad killed jimin's parents."_

_the voices in my head started yelling, "she's lying! you killed his parents! kill her!"_

the doctor wrote some stuff down in his notes, he told her, "keep going, you're nearly there." dahyun saw flashbacks of kai in the forest, remembering how she kept punching him, almost to the point of killing him but somehow he got away.

"wait..." she said but her mind was working on its own. it showed a flashback from four years ago, the day jimin's parents died.

_both dads were fighting in their office._ _dahyun was playing hide and seek with jimin. he was counting down._ _she went to hide in her father's office._

_when she got there, dahyun's father got violent and they started fighting. jimin's father pushed him and ran out._

_dahyun didn't want jimin's dad to get hurt so she stopped her father. he went to push her away but dahyun, as a protective instinct, grabbed something close by and struck him across the head with it. she looked at her hands and saw it was a hammer._

_she looked down to see her father dead on the ground. she felt alive, smiling at the sight of him laying dead._

_'i want more...' she said to herself. she grabbed the keys on the table and ran out to find jimin's dad._

_on the way, jimin's mum appeared. she saw dahyun and said, "dahyun! i heard there was a fight? where's your father?" dahyun didn't say anything and just simply smiled._

_dahyun kept running a few minutes later. it was easy to push jimin's mom into the water. she went to find jimin's dad, her next prey._

_and there he was, hiding behind a container. dahyun went up to him, telling him quietly, "shh, i'll help you hide from my dad. here, get inside." she unlocked the container with the keys and lead him inside. then she locked him inside, smiling to himself._

"no! get me out! i don't want to see anymore!" dahyun yelled, pulling the chains with all her might. the doctor and namjoon watched quietly, watching it all unfold.

dahyun saw one last flashback. this one was the hardest to see, making her cry out and scream.

_"dahyun...what are you.." jimin said slowly, backing away from me as i came closer._

_i smiled wickedly with the knife in my hands, coming closer and closer._

_"goodbye jimin, i love you," i spoke quietly before i proceeded to violently end him with my knife._

after the final vision, dahyun opened her eyes in shock. sweat was dripping down her head as her breaths came out hard and rough.

the doctor put down his notepad and walked over to dahyun, sitting down next to her on the bed. he put a hand on her shoulder and said, "you saw everything...now you know."

dahyun stared at the wall, tears continuing to fall from her face. she nodded slowly, her arms going limp by her sides. namjoon released the breath that he was holding, feeling relieved.

the doctor asked dahyun, "we need you to say it, dahyun. then your final checkup is complete."

she nodded, turning her head to look at the doctor.

"my name is kim dahyun...and i'm the killer."

the doctor and namjoon walked out of dahyun's room. there was some people waiting outside. namjoon leant against the wall, feeling mentally drained. a warm hand touched his shoulder, he turned his head to see rose.

"how did it go?" rose asked with concern. namjoon nodded and said, "she remembered everything, it's alright now."

the doctor turned to look at two more people standing there. he took out a piece of paper from his folder and said, "i need you to sign this as dahyun's mother. she's alright now but will be staying here for a long time, just to be sure."

dahyun's mom nodded, taking the paper and signing it. ray was next to her, looking over her shoulder at the paper.

"when will she get out?" he asked the doctor.

"depends, maybe in ten years when her mind is more mature."

namjoon looked at the three adults and asked, "sorry but i have one more question. it doesn't seem to make sense."

"yes, what is it?"

namjoon asked, "why did ms momo tell dahyun that her dad was the killer?"

"oh, that was a lie. momo knew if she said that dahyun was the killer, she would be killed. but in the end, dahyun did end up killing her," dahyun's mom said.

rose frowned, holding hands with namjoon. he looked at dahyun's mom, asking her, "your book...was it true that you left clues so dahyun could find the killer?"

dahyun's mom sighed and said, "yes, that's true. i wanted dahyun to figure out that she was the killer herself. in each of my chapters, i thought it would it lead to the hammer and keys that was in the port and it did. but for some reason, it didn't trigger the thought that she used these weapons to kill her dad and jimin's dad."

namjoon nodded, taking out a piece of paper and said, "we found a paper from your book that she never read, it was found in ray's apartment in busan. it clearly says here that dahyun was the killer."

dahyun's mom nodded, replying, "and that's why i'm guessing she never got the real answer. the book was destroyed somehow and that page was missing."

"one more question..." namjoon said.

"was it true that you told dahyun to leave jimin during the investigation?" he asked.

she nodded, telling him, "i told dahyun to stay away from jimin, yes. it was to protect him. i knew she would hurt him eventually and didn't want that happening. but jimin had feelings for dahyun, so obviously he would follow her."

namjoon nodded, frowning at the thought of jimin. losing his friend was hard, he still wasn't over it.

the doctor looked at everyone and spoke, "well, it looks like we're done here." namjoon, rose, ray and dahyun's mom nodded, looking at each other with content smiles.

"thank you and good night."

**Author's Note:**

> hi! thanks a bunch for reading :)
> 
> this story isn't like anything you've seen. it's full of unexpected plot twists and super crazy adventures by the characters.
> 
> if you're into that, please read on! trust me, it's going to be a bumpy ride!
> 
> thanks again and hope you enjoy reading!


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